At the department store chain Galeria Karstadt Kaufhof, the Verdi union continues to rely on warning strikes to keep the pressure on employers high in collective bargaining. The locations in Duisburg, Wuppertal, Dortmund, Münster, Cologne, Siegburg, Aachen, Bochum, Oberhausen, Mülheim and Essen are to be on strike on Friday, as Verdi announced. It is unclear how many employees will stop working and whether there will be any restrictions for customers.
The trade unionist Silke Zimmer emphasized that the workforce had already made big cuts to save the department store group – a salary of 5,500 euros per full-time position had been waived in order to enable investments in the future of the company. But now you need “a good collective bargaining agreement” that is above the inflation rate. Everyday inflation is hitting employees hard, most of them have hardly any money left to freely dispose of. “Now we finally need another way, the department store only has a future with well-paid and sufficiently available staff.”
Zimmer called on employers to give in. In addition, Verdi will continue to support the locations threatened with closure. “For us it still applies that we fight for every department store and every job.”
Galeria Karstadt Kaufhof has had tough times, including insolvency proceedings. With fewer branches than before, the company wants to get back on the road to success. The restructuring plan that came into force at the end of May provides for the closure of around a third of the last 129 branches. (dpa)