Hamburg brings utilities back into public ownership - let's have some of that here

Following a public referendum, Hamburg, Germany’s second largest city has voted to take all available steps to re-municipalise the electricity, gas, and district heating networks. The Guardian reports that Hamburg has 'joined a growing number of cities worldwide deciding to end their experiments with privatisation. Since 2007, 170 municipalities in Germany alone have brought energy services back into public hands. Globally, at least 100 cities have done the same with privatised water services over the past 15 years, including dozens of municipalities in France – once seen as a growing focus for water privatisation'
http://www.theguardian.com/cities/2014/nov/12/hamburg-global-reverse-privatisation-city-services

Pay breakthrough for ver.di in Germany

UNISON’s German sister union ver.di has secured a bumper two year deal in negotiations with the German government. A 3% increase for this year and a 2.4% pay rise next year for 2.1 million public sector workers has been won following a campaign themed ‘we’re worth it’ (snap) backed up by industrial action across public services in Germany in recent weeks:
http://uk.reuters.com/article/2014/04/01/germany-wages-public-sector-idUKL5N0MT4L020140401?rpc=401&feedType=RSS&feedName=economicIndicatorsNews&rpc=401

Public ownership success stories across Europe

As the Con Dems intensify privatisation in the UK's NHS, postal and probation services, a report from the We Own It campaign highlights good examples of national and regional governments returning services to public ownership – from water services in France to waste disposal in Germany:
http://weownit.org.uk/sites/default/files/downloads/Better-In-Public-Hands-Why-We-Need-A-Public-Service-Users-Bill.pdf

IG Metall uses comedy video to get out the vote

Germany’s 2.4m strong metalworkers' union IG Metall has published a very amusing viral video to pose key questions and mobilise turnout in the run-up to the German general election which is taking place on Sunday 22 September:
http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/video/2013/sep/05/germany-election-ad-viral-video

A Marshall Plan for Europe - German Unions Aim High

The German trade union centre DGB has published an ambitious €260 billion Marshall Plan for Europe, aimed at generating economic growth and new jobs between 2013 to 2022. The DGB argues that Europe’s welfare state should be expanded rather than cut back and that high quality public and private-sector services are essential - both for designing a modern welfare state and for dynamic and innovative industry:http://www.fesdc.org/pdf/A-Marshall-Plan-for-Europe_EN.pdf

Trade Union size & character - German lessons for the UK?

The success of the 2.1m strong ver.di union in securing a 6.3 percent two year pay rise for Germany's public service workers was bad timing for the writer of a Guardian article - published on Saturday, the same day as the deal was reported - which boosted the 'rise of small unions' in the EU's largest nation:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2012/mar/31/germany-trade-unions-model-disaster

6.3% 2 year wage deal agreed in Germany following public sector strikes

Two million German public sector workers will get a pay rise of 6.3 percent over two years, reports Reuters, ending a dispute that disrupted services across Germany in recent weeks.
http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/03/31/us-germany-wages-idUSBRE82U03Q20120331

Public sector pay - rolling strikes across Germany

As we grapple with the challenge posed by indefinite public sector pay freezes and the proposed break up of national bargaining in the UK, German public sector workers in UNISON's sister union ver.di are using impressive strike tactics to build pressure in support of a 6.5% or minimum €200 a month pay rise. Yesterday, in the latest in a series of 'warning strikes' across all 16 German states, refuse collectors, nursery teachers, bus and rail staff started a week long walk out across the north, primarily in Lower Saxony where 450,000 commuters were affected:  http://www.morningstaronline.co.uk/news/content/view/full/116800

The Downside of the German Economy - The Rise of the 'Mini Jobs'

UNISON activists representing members in the cleaning, catering and low wage sector will be well aware of the new employment patterns of workers with multi jobs and more than one employer. Current austerity strategists have been raising the example of the German economy to contrast its relative ability to survive compared with other advanced economies, including the UK. But in Germany – where there is no minimum wage at all, rising job insecurity and even the Social Democrats have been supporting massive cuts in welfare – the so called German success is being paid for by the low paid:
http://uk.news.yahoo.com/insight-dark-side-germanys-jobs-miracle-105821742.html

ver.di – 10 years on‏

The German trade union ver.di, which was formed in 1991 as a 3 million strong super union (public and private service industries), recently celebrated its 10th birthday. http://geschichte.verdi.de/chronik

German unions call for national minimum wage to combat social dumping

The FT reports that Germany could see a net inflow of almost 800,000 migrant workers from central and eastern Europe over the next two years, following the opening of its borders to free labour movement in the European Union on May 1:
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/9b3f374c-7022-11e0-bea7-00144feabdc0.html#axzz1KtQ2eqCg

Public sector pay strikes in Germany

Ver.di, the German public service union, has mounted a series of one day ‘token strikes’ in support of a 3% pay rise for members employed by regional governments. Pay talks had stalled on 25 February when the employers refused to present an offer.