In the first round of collective bargaining for the approximately 17,400 remaining employees of the insolvent department store group Galeria Karstadt Kaufhof, there was no agreement. The demands of the Verdi union have been taken note of, the company informed its employees on Friday. According to the first assessment, they cannot be reconciled with the submitted insolvency plan. The parties want to continue their talks on February 22nd.
Die Gewerkschaft Verdi hatte zum Verhandlungsauftakt in Frankfurt
insisted that after the failure of the first restructuring from 2020, the collective bargaining agreements for the retail trade would have to apply again. At the time, the Galeria employees had agreed to a reduced wage agreement as a contribution to restructuring, which, according to Verdi, meant up to 5,500 euros less annual salary for a full-time employee.
Inzwischen ist das Unternehmen ein zweites Mal in die Insolvenz
gone and received extensive state aid during the Corona crisis. A few days ago, the district court in Essen opened new insolvency proceedings for the retail giant. Galeria submitted the insolvency plan with details of the restructuring concept to the court. According to the company, it is still unclear how many of the 129 branches will continue. To this end, negotiations were under way with the landlords of the properties as well as potential buyers of individual branches.