German metalworkers union opts for warning strike as leverage for raises

BERLIN

Germany’s largest industrial union IG Metall called for a nationwide “warning strike” on Tuesday in the electrical engineering and metal industries to pressure employers for wage increases.

The strikes will start as early as midnight in some firms and will last multiple hours.

The union decided to start warning strikes as it rejected offers of total wage increases of 3.6% for 3.9 million workers in key German sectors.

German employers offered workers in the automotive, metal, and electricity sectors a wage increase of 1.7% from July 2025 and another 1.9% increase a year later for a period of 27 months, while the union is seeking a 7% increase.

Industrial firms in Germany criticized the union’s demand, calling it unrealistic, as the weak production and the general slowdown in the industry led to weaker orders.

The union aims for profits to be shared with workers, putting special emphasis on the fact that the purchasing power of workers in these industries has declined after years of high inflation.

IG Metall Chair Christiane Benner said that the “meager offer” of employers ignores the gravity of the situation, as 3.9 million workers need higher wages.

The German government is under pressure to revitalize the economy while struggling to grow amid strong competition, especially from China, weak demand for German-made products, and structural difficulties in the industry.

Analysts say finding cheap subcontractors in Eastern Europe, ever-increasing exports to China, and outsourcing the country’s defense to the US, as well as importing cheap energy and immediate goods, labeling them “Made in Germany,” no longer works for the country as well as they once did.

*Writing by Emir Yildirim in Istanbul