Negotiations over pay and job security in North Rhine-Westphalia’s metal and electrical industries are moving towards a new escalation. The regional bargaining commission of IG Metall has voted to ask the union’s national executive board to authorize 24-hour warning strikes.
The executive board is expected to decide on Thursday, 12 November, after reviewing feedback from other regional bargaining districts. The application is not yet an authorization to strike: no dates or affected workplaces have been announced.
The move follows the third bargaining round in Düsseldorf on 9 November, which ended without progress. The union says employers have not offered sufficient guarantees for wages, jobs and industrial sites.
IG Metall is seeking a five per cent pay increase over 12 months, along with commitments to protect jobs and sites and support future investment. It also wants employees at profitable companies to share in business success.
The employers’ offer provides a one-off payment equal to one per cent of average annual gross contractual pay in July 2027 and a 1.3 per cent increase in wage tables from July 2028. The agreement would run until 31 December 2028.
The employers’ association says companies are prepared to negotiate binding arrangements to safeguard investment, innovation, sites and jobs, but further talks are needed on criteria and procedures. It has warned that further escalation would be unhelpful amid difficult conditions for the industry.
The negotiations cover around 640,000 workers in North Rhine-Westphalia. Whether 24-hour stoppages will go ahead will depend on the national board’s decision; there is no confirmed strike timetable yet.
