Collective contract negotiations in the electrical industry with no result ended!

Collective contract negotiations in the electrical industry with no result ended!

On April 9, 2025, the second collective agreement negotiation for around 60,000 employees of the electrical and electronics industry was interrupted without a result. According to ots have simply not submitted any offer for wage and salary increases. However, the unions Pro-Ge and GPA demand fair and sustainable wage increases, especially against the background of a relevant inflation rate of 2.75 percent.

The negotiations were opened on March 21, 2025 when the unions handed over their claim program and the first round of negotiation took place. Chief negotiator Reinhold Binder from Pro-Ge and Karl Dürtscher from GPA emphasize the urgency of a negotiable offer. Among other things, they call for the increase in the allowance for shift work and an easier accessibility of the sixth vacation week.

demands of the unions

Overall, the unions make several central demands:

• increase in the allowance for the second layer to 1.50 euros per hour
• increase in the allowance for the third layer to five euros per hour
• improved accessibility of the sixth vacation week
• Protection of the leisure option, which was agreed in the collective agreement for ten years in 2016 and expires in 2025

This leisure option, which was also discussed in previous negotiations, can only be implemented with a voluntary company agreement between the company and the works council. In the event of a lack of agreement, an Austria -wide conference of works councils is planned for April 30, 2025.

context of the negotiations

Already in the first round of this year's spring wage round, the unions pointed out the loads due to the inflation crisis and the increasing energy prices. Karl Dürtscher emphasized that the low income groups in particular need noticeable increases. With the upcoming new collective agreement, which should apply from May 1, 2025, everyone involved is under pressure to reach an agreement.

In a comparison to the results of the last collective agreement negotiations in the chemical industry, in which an increase in wages was achieved by 7.5 percent, employers in the electrical and electronics industry are initially uncooperative. GPA pointing out to create stable and fair conditions for the employees to do justice to the market.

The upcoming rounds of negotiations could be decisive for how the transformation of the industry will be designed in the next few years. It remains to be seen whether the employers are willing to respond to the demands of the unions and to offer the employees an appropriate remuneration.