On 11 September, the Institute of Economic and Social Research (WSI) of the Hans-Böckler-Stiftung published its annual report on collective action in Germany for 2024. In 2024, the WSI counted 286 labor disputes, 26 fewer than in 2023, when a total of 312 collective bargaining disputes accompanied by strikes were recorded. The WSI estimates that the volume of industrial action in 2024 was significantly lower than in the previous year, with 946,000 working days lost due to industrial action, even though the number of strike participants was significantly higher at 912,000 compared to 857,000 strikers in 2023. One of the main reasons for this contrasting development is that, although there were very widespread waves of warning strikes in the metal and electrical industry, which dominated strike activity in 2024 in terms of numbers, the individual work stoppages were on average much shorter than in the previous year. The year 2025 began with some spectacular work stoppages in many areas of the federal and local public service. Since there will be no collective negotiations in most major industrial sectors in 2025, industrial action in the current year will again be more strongly influenced by the service sectors.
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For more information, please contact Paul de Beer or Oana Ciuca, De Burcht (Scientific Bureau for the Dutch Trade Union Movement) p.t.debeer@uva.nl or the Head of communications at the ETUI, Mehmet Koksal mkoksal@etui.org. For previous full issues of the Collective bargaining newsletter please visit https://www.etui.org/Newsletters/Collective-bargaining-newsletter or consult the archive with all articles in our database at www.cbnarchive.eu.
You may find further information on the ETUI at www.etui.org.