German union verdi calls nationwide strikes at Postbank branches

DPA
2 min read
0
A person wears a high-visibility vest with the Verdi logo and a red whistle. Christophe Gateau/dpa
A person wears a high-visibility vest with the Verdi logo and a red whistle. Christophe Gateau/dpa

The German trade union verdi is extending its strikes ahead of the fourth round of negotiations in the wage dispute at Deutsche Bank subsidiary Postbank.

On Thursday, in addition to employees in the back-office service units and call centres, verdi is also calling for work stoppages at branches throughout Germany.

"This will once again send a clear signal that all employees are behind the demands for a significant improvement in pay and an extension of protection against dismissal," verdi negotiator Jan Duscheck said on Tuesday in Berlin.

Strikes have already been taking place in the back offices and call centres since Tuesday.

The intensification of the strikes ahead of the next round of negotiations in Frankfurt on April 16 is verdi's response to the protracted talks, it said.

The announcement a day and a half before the strikes was intended to ensure that customers could prepare in good time. There could be temporary disruptions, said Duscheck.

Verdi wants to win a 15.5% increase in pay for around 12,000 employees in the Deutsche Bank Group with a Postbank collective agreement, but at least a €600 ($651) increase in monthly salaries. The union is also calling for the protection against dismissal to be extended until the end of 2028.

Deutsche Bank plans to close up to 250 of the 550 Postbank branches by mid-2026, which includes staff cuts.

Verdi and the Deutsche Bank Employees' Association (DBV) increased the pressure in the wage dispute on Monday and called on employees in the back office and call centres across Germany to strike from Tuesday to Wednesday.

"Despite weeks of negotiations, the employer is still not prepared to make any substantial concessions to Postbank employees," Duscheck criticized.

Advertisement

Recommended Stories

  • She Was Convicted of Making a Bank Her Personal ATM—and Sentenced to Death

    The case became one of the most high profile in a relentless anticorruption campaign in Vietnam dubbed the “Blazing Furnace.”

  • Amazon CEO’s Comments Violated Labor Law, NLRB Judge Rules

    (Bloomberg) -- Amazon.com Inc. Chief Executive Officer Andy Jassy made comments to the media in 2022 that violated federal labor law, a US National Labor Relations Board judge ruled Wednesday.Most Read from BloombergUS and Saudis Near Defense Pact Meant to Reshape Middle EastJerome Powell Offered Markets a Reprieve. It Vanished in a BlinkTesla Axes Supercharger Team in Blow to Broader EV MarketNYPD Arrests Over 300 Protesters in Crackdown on College CampusesThe Ozempic Effect: How a Weight Loss

  • Binance and CZ’s Fortunes Are Set to Grow, Even in Jail

    (Bloomberg) -- It’s “better to ask for forgiveness than permission” when it comes to complying with the law, the billionaire founder of the Binance cryptocurrency exchange once told his team, according to the US government.Most Read from BloombergUS and Saudis Near Defense Pact Meant to Reshape Middle EastJerome Powell Offered Markets a Reprieve. It Vanished in a BlinkTesla Axes Supercharger Team in Blow to Broader EV MarketNYPD Arrests Over 300 Protesters in Crackdown on College CampusesThe Oze

  • Baby boomers are ‘stuck in place’ and can’t afford to move out of their homes — what needs to change?

    Experts say cities and states need to consider policy changes to incentivize older Americans to downsize.

  • Tech founder’s $33bn fortune makes him world’s richest prisoner

    The founder of Binance has become the world’s richest prisoner after he was sentenced to four months in jail, marking a stunning downfall for the former boss of the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange.

  • Fired Google workers ousted over Israeli contract protests file complaint with labor regulators

    Dozens of Google workers who were fired after internal protests surrounding a lucrative contract that the technology company has with the Israeli government have filed a complaint with labor regulators in an attempt to get their jobs back. The complaint filed late Monday with the National Labor Relations Board alleges about 50 workers were unfairly fired or placed on administrative leave earlier this month in the aftermath of employee sit-ins that occurred at Google offices in New York and Sunnyvale, California.

  • Another crypto CEO sentenced to prison

    Binance founder Changpeng Zhao has been sentenced to four months in prison after pleading guilty to money laundering.

  • Sex offender asks Norway's Supreme Court to declare social media access is a human right

    A convicted sex offender is asking the Norwegian Supreme Court to declare that social media access is a human right. The case before the court Thursday involves a man who molested a minor and used the Snapchat messaging app to connect with young boys. The case turns on how vital social media have become for freedom of expression, even though the court must decide the case through laws that predate such sites.

  • Binance crypto founder Zhao sentenced to four months in prison

    SEATTLE (Reuters) -Changpeng Zhao, the former chief executive of Binance, was sentenced on Tuesday to four months in prison after pleading guilty to violating U.S. laws against money laundering at the world's largest cryptocurrency exchange. Once considered the most powerful crypto industry figure, Zhao, known as "CZ," is the second major crypto boss to be sentenced to prison. The sentence imposed by U.S. District Judge Richard Jones in Seattle was significantly shorter than the three years sought by prosecutors, and below the maximum 1-1/2 years recommended under federal guidelines.

  • Binance founder Changpeng ‘CZ’ Zhao sentenced to 4 months, will enter prison as country’s richest inmate

    The settlement came amid a string of enforcement actions against crypto industry leaders, including FTX’s Sam Bankman-Fried.