Women - men - gender. - Bibliothek der Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung

The trade unions have to be prepared to have a look at the structures
and appraisal criteria of collective agreements. And those companies
that are consistently evading wage commitments must again sign collective
agreements. We know sectors, where, for years now, there has
been no movement on collective bargaining of wages. The collective
agreements are renewed but neither side spares a glance at the structures.
Of course, this would mean an enormous amount of work for
about 70, 000 collective agreements in Germany. What we need is
more women on the collective agreement committees and also men
who have been sensitised to such issues. A lot still remains to be done.
For sectors without collective agreements, the main demand is for the
legally stipulated minimum wages. Women are demanding that this
should not be sector specifi c. The current trend towards a sector specifi
c minimum wage level is especially problematic for the gainful employment
of women.
No, but, it is nevertheless, a correct and absolutely necessary step, particularly
in the fi eld of nursing and care-giving. I am sure many women
would benefi t if a minimum wage level were to be fi xed. But the
wage level is nowhere near the level demanded by the trade unions.
The absolute minimum that would secure subsistence is, according to
us, 1,300 Euro per month or 7.50 Euro per hour. We are a long way off
from that fi gure.
It is absolutely necessary to reduce the number of so called mini-jobs,
that today amount to 6.5 million. This has been our demand for many
years now. The study “Providing for Old-Age in Germany” has demonstrated
that women are increasingly being forced to take up minijobs.
But these do not provide any social security. This means that
although women are indeed working, yet they are not contributing
towards social welfare funds. Old-age poverty is a challenge across Germany.
In the case of the generation of women, who will be retiring in
twenty years, the old-age poverty in both East and West Germany
would have risen steeply. We are going to initiate a campaign on this
issue. The demand to give more weightage to child-raising time is, for
example, being discussed. However, there is also a great deal of resistance
to this. Many fear a “premium for having children”.
FRIEDRICH-EBERT-STIFTUNG
WOMEN MEN GENDER
In the trade union campaign
“I am worth more”, there is a
demand for “Equal pay for equal
work”. How can you ensure that
the collective agreements are
non-discriminatory and thus
contribute to equitable pay? In
certain areas there is no wage
commitment. What can the
trade unions do in such cases?
The Bundestag, the Lower House
of Parliament, has cleared the way
for minimum wages in another six
sectors. Is that suffi cient to protect
women against the low end wage
bracket?
Women, in particular, are impacted
by old-age poverty. This is due to
their professional and personal life
situations. The minimum wage, that
is appropriate payment, would be an
important step in the direction of
providing security in old-age. What
additional measures, according to
you, are required to be taken?
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