New collective agreement in the Austrian metalworking crafts sector reached

In the evening hours of 20 November 2006 the collective bargaining round, covering some 108.000 blue collar workers in craft enterprises in the metalworking sector was successfully concluded. The formal opening of the pay round in the metalworking crafts sector with an exchange of opinions on the economic situation and a presentation of demands took place on 27 September 2006 and negotiations over wages and improvements of legal framework conditions started in earnest on 14 November 2006,

The new agreement provides for an increase of collectively agreed minimum wages and apprentices´ remunerations by 2.6 %. The new minimum pay rate will thus stand at 1.353,59 Euro. Effective wages will be raised by 2,4% and additional payments and expense allowances by 1,6 %. The provisions of the new agreement will take effect as from 1. January 2007.

Additionally, a three- months´ probationary period for apprentices, as stipulated by the federal legislation on vocational training, covering all apprenticeship contracts, entering into force as from 01.01.2007, was agreed.

Already at the opening of this year´ s bargaining round in the sector, the federal guild for electrical, alarm and communication technicians had withdrawn from the joint negotiation team on the employers’ team and put forward their demand for separate negotiations. Hence, negotiations for the workers in the establishments of this guild were set to start as from 18 December 2006.

In addition, the Viennese and Tyrolean provincial guilds for plumbing, heating and air condition installers have not yet joined the agreement.

In metalworking crafts this is not an unusual course of action that several lower level employers´ associations hesitate to join the sectoral agreement and have to be brought in separately.

Manfred Anderle