German labour union IG Metall has called on employees at wind turbine manufacturer Vestas to walk out.
The planned strike action would take place from 28 November to 2 December.
Around 300 Vestas employees affiliated with the union previously went on strike on 7 November. The union was calling for better working conditions, including greater transparency in remuneration, wage increases and equal pay for equal work.
In addition, it held four warning strikes earlier this year after Vestas broke off negotiations in July.
Over the coming week, numerous actions and rallies are planned throughout Germany, including in Husum in Schleswig-Holstein and Thalfang near Trier. On 1 December, employees from all over Germany are expected to attend a rally in front of the Vestas German headquarters in Hamburg.
Approximately 1700 people are employed at Vestas Deutschland GmbH. A significant number of them work nationwide in the service and maintenance of wind turbines.
Martin Bitter, Managing Director of IG Metall Rendsburg, said: “We’re increasing the pressure. Colleagues stop working because they have a legitimate interest in the employer finally taking care of their issues.
“Finally, we are talking about the specialists of the energy transition. Topics such as regular wage increases, special payments or partial retirement should be part of sustainable working conditions.”
In a statement, Vestas said: “We regret strongly to see that IG Metall has initiated this strike against a wind turbine manufacturer in Germany in times of a global energy crisis and energy insecurity.
“We continue to see that only a minority is following the strike call – the vast majority, more than 85% of Vestas Deutschland employees, are working normally. Vestas remains convinced that our approach of also regulating pay issues in trusting cooperation exclusively with the works council is the best way forward.
“The aftermath of the pandemic, Russia’s war in the Ukraine, and other external factors which we cannot influence hit Vestas and the wind industry overall hard. Despite all of this, Vestas has worked relentlessly to support our employees in the best possible way. Amongst other measures, we brought forward a proposal to the works council to significantly increase the salaries of our service technicians. However, influenced by IG Metall, our works council decided to not sign the proposed agreement.
“So far, we have been able to compensate for the strike relatively well, mainly thanks to all employees who are not taking part in the IG Metall strike. We would like to thank our employees for this.”