Economic state of affairs: “Anyone who looks away now risks jobs, added value and future opportunities” | EUROtoday

From the angle of the IG Metall union, the metallic and electrical business in northern Germany is “between light and shadow”. The normal financial disaster in Germany can also be affecting the north. However, the coastal district with the 5 coastal states is much less affected than the south with its considerably bigger vehicle business and mechanical engineering.

“Our situation is better than in many other regions, but it is fragile,” stated district supervisor Daniel Friedrich on the annual press convention on Tuesday in Hamburg: “Anyone who looks the other way now risks jobs, added value and future opportunities.”

The corporations within the metallic and electrical industries on the coast have already skilled huge structural modifications in latest a long time and have translated these challenges into extra trendy firm types and merchandise. The upheavals within the vehicle business within the south and west would have an effect on the coast much less severely. “This is primarily due to our great diversity of industries and the transformations that we have successfully mastered here over the past decades,” stated Friedrich. Positive examples are the aviation business, particularly Airbus, medical expertise and shipbuilding, the place the naval shipyards specifically at present have full order books.

The commerce unionist sees a necessity for motion within the offshore wind business, amongst different issues. It continues to be unclear whether or not the newest bulletins, for instance on the Federal Government’s European “North Sea Summit” in Hamburg on the finish of January, will “actually create regional added value,” says Friedrich. The federal authorities known as upon to make sure funding safety and clear choices.

The upcoming collective bargaining spherical within the metallic and electrical industries within the fall might be a feat of energy: “We have to strike a balance between strong, future-oriented industries and companies that are under enormous pressure.” The works councils may also be re-elected in March and April: “Co-determination is democracy in action. Anyone who experiences that their voice counts in the company also strengthens our democratic society,” stated Friedrich. Despite some public debates, “no right-wing pseudo-unions are active” within the greater than 1,000 northern German industrial corporations with virtually 300,000 workers.

The district supervisor sharply criticized the continued welfare state debate. “The CDU has to decide: make employees scapegoats – or shape change together with them. Both are not possible.” IG Metall has launched an initiative for work and restoration with the goal of securing employment, strengthening competitiveness and actively shaping the transformation. Where this isn’t achieved collectively, “conflicts will increase”.

However, the financial disaster and demographic change are actually additionally having an influence on the membership numbers of IG Metall within the north. Almost 9,000 folks joined the union in Bremen, Hamburg, Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, Schleswig-Holstein and northwestern Lower Saxony. However, because of employees cuts, fewer vacation jobs within the automotive sector and demographic change, the variety of members within the Coastal District fell by 3.2 p.c to 171,735 in 2025 in comparison with the earlier yr.

IG Metall nonetheless has a powerful place within the corporations, stated Friedrich: There are round 123,000 firm members and due to this fact – regardless of the latest Corona disaster – “7,400 more than ten years ago”.

Olaf Preuß is a enterprise reporter for WELT and WELT AM SONNTAG for Hamburg and northern Germany. He has been reporting on industries similar to shipbuilding, plane development and the fundamental metals business for greater than three a long time.