Collective bargaining in the metal industry: Employers submit their first offer

In the collective bargaining dispute in the North Rhine-Westphalia metal and electrical industry, the employers submitted an offer in the second round of negotiations. It initially provides for a one-off payment in July 2027 amounting to one percent of an annual salary. In July 2028, wages and salaries are expected to rise by 1.3 percent. The term should be 26 months, as the Metall NRW employers' association reported in Düsseldorf. Among other things, IG Metall entered the negotiations with a demand for five percent more wages over a period of 12 months.

The offer is coordinated with all employer associations in the German metal and electrical industry nationwide. It is a sincere attempt to provide “indications” for a sustainable result in an extremely difficult collective bargaining round.

In view of the longest and most serious structural crisis in the industry, it is a "sign of the employers' willingness to find a quick and constructive solution," explained the metal employers' negotiator, Arndt G. Kirchhoff, according to the statement. It is also an attempt to do justice to the “almost non-existent” scope for distribution.

Kirchhoff continued that IG Metall's demand continues to cause great incomprehension among companies and completely ignores economic realities. "The very high union demands hit the companies at a time when they need cost relief rather than cost increases." The 2026 collective bargaining round is also a crucial one for the acceptance of the area collective agreement, he emphasized.

Collective bargaining for the 3.7 million employees nationwide in Germany's largest industrial sector began almost three weeks ago with negotiations in the districts of North Rhine-Westphalia and Baden-Württemberg. In North Rhine-Westphalia, around 640,000 people are employed in the industry. There were also second rounds of negotiations in several other collective bargaining districts on Tuesday. The peace obligation ends at the end of October 31st. From then on, warning strikes are possible.