WAGES

Autonomy in wage bargaining prevails in Germany. This means that the so-called parties to the collective wage agreement i.e. the representatives of the employees (trade unions) and the employer (employers’ associations) are responsible for the layout of the employment contract including payment.

In collective wage agreements, these are regulated by the framework conditions of the employment and also wage increases. For temporary workers in Germany, it holds true that they have to be treated in the same way as a comparable employee in the client company – even when it comes to payment, unless a collective wage agreement applies to the temporary employment. Such a wage regulation currently forms the basis for almost all temporary employment contracts in Germany. Such a high pay commitment does not exist in any other sector in Germany.

Minimum wage

The basic wage for temporary employment is generally binding as a sector minimum wage, even for temporary workers loaned to Germany from abroad. This effectively rules out wage dumping.

At present, the following payment is stipulated for temporary employment in Germany as the minimum wage:

Sector-related extra pay

There are some sectors where there are noticeable differences between the payment to temporary workers and the so-called “permanent workforce” in the client company. For these sectors, sector-related extra pay scales have been agreed upon. The longer the employment lasts, the higher the sector-related extra pay is. They get closer to the wage level in the client company in five steps and within nine months and thus close the “wage gap”:

Collective agreement package

The iGZ DGB collective agreement package stipulates both the payment and many other issues regarding the employment relationship. The main wage brochure summarises, the framework payment agreement, the wage payment agreement, the master wage agreement and the collective wage agreement for securing employment.

Source: iGZ