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Elon Musk at a gig in the Tesla factory in Shanghai
Photo: Ding Ting / imago images / Xinhua
There has not been a factory of this size in Germany for a long time - and certainly not in structurally weak Brandenburg: Tesla is building a car plant in Grünheide near Berlin that is supposed to provide work for 12,000 people.
It is understandable that many observers are worried about what kind of employer Tesla will be.
The head of the responsible employment agency in Frankfurt (Oder), Jochem Freyer, spreads a good mood on this question.
He now firmly assumes that the US electric car manufacturer Tesla will pay its employees in Grünheide based on collective bargaining agreements, he now told the "Handelsblatt": "Tesla pays significantly better than is customary in the area and will be based on the collective wage agreement of the metal and electrical industry . "
The US group Tesla, like typical start-ups, is rather negative towards unions.
Freyer's assessment is not surprising: "You will not take over and apply the collective agreement" if you pay based on collective agreements.
But that's a big difference because collective agreements cover much more than just salary data.
These include questions of working hours, employee development, overtime bonuses or other company services.
Freyer is rather modest: "I think it is a big step when we approach an industrial collective agreement."
The East German federal states are not spoiled in this regard: There are far fewer employees there who have a collective agreement.
The new Tesla employees would essentially be recruited from the unemployed and job changers, says the head of the authorities.
"For Tesla, it is not a no-go to hire someone who has been out of work for a long time or who has not completed vocational training."
He knows that differently from many other companies.
The group pays this group of employees a starting salary of 2,700 euros.
"The payment is just a hit for this level," said Freyer.
Those who even have a suitable training can expect a gross monthly salary of around 3500 euros to start.
"Several executives under contract"
A few days ago, CEO Elon Musk traveled to Berlin to hold job interviews.
He is known for personally selecting the first occupation of new locations, even for supposedly less important positions.
Grünheide is not the first German location for Tesla.
In 2017, the car manufacturer took over the medium-sized robot specialist Grohmann in Rhineland-Palatinate.
There, too, no collective agreement applies; at the time of the takeover, most salaries were significantly lower, but the overtime bonuses were probably very attractive.
According to the head of the employment agency, Freyer, there are already a number of managers and specialists under contract for the plant in Grünheide, which is due to start production in the coming year.
"By the beginning of 2021 we want to place around 200 people as warehouse workers," he said.
"In December there will be application days with interviews and tests. And in the evening a decision will be made immediately."
It is about permanent full-time positions, 7000 by next summer.
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