Verdi has demanded a 7% pay raise, effective over a twelve-month period, just before the beginning of wage negotiations within the retail sector. The union reported on Thursday that this demand covers all sixteen defined retail tariff areas, as well as the twenty tariff sectors covering wholesale and outer trade. The primary goal is to significantly raise the real incomes of workers above the current rate of inflation.
Silke Zimmer, a member of Verdi’s executive board, stated that the union rejects one-time lump-sum payments as a replacement for permanent, structural salary increases. Furthermore, a major focus of the negotiations is securing disproportionately higher wages for apprentices. Zimmer highlighted that many retail employees are forced to work part-time involuntarily and are consequently hit particularly hard by rising prices. She stated that the situation is unsustainable, noting that while companies generate millions of euros daily, employees struggle at home to make ends meet due to low wages.
Negotiations covering approximately 5.2 million workers in the retail, wholesale, and outer trade sectors are scheduled to commence on April 17th in the states of North Rhine-Westphalia and Baden-Württemberg.