Overview

• Brewery workers began a 24-hour warning strike on May 27 at major sites including Flensburger, Carlsberg in Hamburg and Berliner-Kindl-Schultheiss in Berlin to intensify stalled wage negotiations.
• The NGG demands a retroactive 6% wage increase for 12 months across northern breweries and a 7% rise at the Berlin plant, along with a €50 monthly advance for certain staff.
• Sector-wide offers of a 1% increase in October 2025 and 2.1% in April 2026 were turned down by the union as inadequate to cope with living-cost pressures.
• The Radeberger Gruppe’s separate offer of a 2.2% raise for 2025 and 2.0% for 2026 was also rejected by NGG negotiators who say it fails to reflect inflation.
• Retailers expect shelves to remain stocked despite the stoppage, although products with lower warehouse reserves may face short-term gaps.