In the collective bargaining in the banking sector, there was still no agreement after the third round. With a salary increase of six percent plus 15 euros (on average plus 6.46 percent) and a one-off payment of 1,000 euros, the employer’s offer is well below inflation, the trade union GPA criticized on Thursday. Workers’ representatives now want to step up the pressure. However, the employers do not want to get rid of their offer.
“Across Austria, employees are informed during working hours about the status of the negotiations and further works council and union measures are discussed and decided,” said the head of negotiations at the GPA trade union, Wolfgang Pischinger.
Next round of negotiations on 23 March
By the time of the next round of negotiations on March 23, according to GPA negotiator Helga Fichtinger, “a strong move from employers and an offer that takes into account the industry’s record earnings” is expected, according to GPA negotiator. In addition, the requirement to reduce working hours to 36 hours per week “should be further discussed and seriously addressed”. the same reluctance as with the increase in employees.”
Employer side: Have employees been accommodated yet?
However, the employer side does not want to be put under pressure. The employees are already “reasonably accommodated” and “with regard to the announced work meetings, we see no reason yet to officially adjust our opening offer for the next round of talks,” said Gerald Resch, head of the banking association and negotiator on the employer side, in a press release. In principle, however, the banking association assesses the progress of the negotiations as positive.
In the run-up to the negotiations, the union had advocated a linear and permanent increase in minimum and actual salaries of 10.6 percent. In addition, it was demanded that this increase be paid for 36 hours instead of the previous 38.5 hours per week with full salary compensation.
Source: Krone
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