Overview
- Negotiations produced “no substantial movement” in the latest round and IG Metall has expanded warning strikes after the formal peace obligation expired, with further talks scheduled next week.
- The union is demanding a 5% wage increase for twelve months, higher trainee pay, a social uplift for low-paid groups and a tariff-based profit share.
- Employers have offered a one-off payment of about 1% in July 2027 plus a permanent 1.3% raise only from July 2028 and say larger immediate increases would risk jobs and investment.
- IG Metall says more than 413,000 workers have joined roughly 2,800 strike actions since the walkouts began, and it has floated a conditional proposal to allow limited contract deviations if companies commit to binding investments, site and job guarantees.
- The round covers around 3.7 million workers and could hit supply chains in regions such as Bavaria and Baden-Württemberg, with the dispute’s next phase likely to hinge on whether employers answer the union’s investment-linked compromise or face longer, including possible 24‑hour, strikes.