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A striker with a whistle (archive picture): Labor dispute for "substantial increases" in salary.
Photo: Patrick Seeger / dpa
The Ver.di union is expanding the warning strikes in retail and mail order in Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt and Thuringia.
Shortly before the start of the fourth round of negotiations, the employees of 37 companies are now called on to strike.
Ver.di negotiator Jörg Lauenroth-Mago is demanding a “completely new offer” from the employers.
The fourth round of negotiations begins on Monday.
Until then, workers in Leipzig, Erfurt, Gera, Dresden, Chemnitz and Nossen in particular are on strike.
Employees at a wholesale warehouse in Nossen stopped work on Wednesday.
A strike meeting with the workers' strikers from Nossen as well as from Dresden, East Saxony and Chemnitz is planned for the morning.
Employee offers "do not even correspond to the rise in inflation"
The union demands, among other things, an increase in wages and salaries by 4.5 percent plus 45 euros per month.
In addition, a minimum hourly wage of 12.50 euros is to be set.
"So far, employers have only offered minimal increases that do not even correspond to the rise in inflation," the union said.
The rising costs for housing, food and fuel would make "substantial increases" necessary.
According to a spokesman, employers offer three-year financial statements: in the first year, after two zero months, wages and salaries should increase by 2 percent, in the second year a further 1.4 percent and in the third year 2 percent.
For companies that were particularly affected by the corona pandemic, the increases are to be paid ten months or six months later.
Collective bargaining started on June 1st.
Since then, the union has repeatedly called for strikes in Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt and Thuringia.
In total, the negotiations affect around 280,000 employees in the retail and mail order business.
jlk / dpa
