In view of the nursing shortage in germany, the trade union verdi wants to reach a collective agreement for geriatric care. "In order to stop the ruinous competition in nursing care for the elderly, with its often shamefully low wages, we need a collective agreement that covers all nursing care for the elderly."
This was said by verdi board member sylvia buhler to the deutsche presse-agentur in berlin. Today, at its inaugural meeting, a collective bargaining commission for geriatric care from verdi will decide on the demands for such a contract.
The commission is made up of employees in nursing care for the elderly from all of verdi's regional districts and all types of organizations, explained buhler. Municipal institutions, non-governmental organizations, and ? So secular and ecclesiastical welfare associations ? And private nursing groups. "We want to negotiate a collective bargaining agreement with the secular welfare companies," buhler confirmed earlier announcements. For example, the AWO. "With caritas and diakonie we are looking for a way of appropriate participation." the church carriers have a special position beyond collective bargaining agreements.
"The goal is a collective bargaining agreement that is extended by the federal minister of labor to the entire field of work, namely to inpatient and outpatient care for the elderly for all employees there, not exclusively for nurses," said buhler. Minister hubertus heil (SPD) had already announced his intention to declare such a contract generally binding.
In their coalition agreement, the CDU/CSU and the SPD had previously agreed to increase pay for nursing care for the elderly in accordance with collective agreements: "together with the collective bargaining partners, we want to ensure that collective agreements are applied across the board in nursing care for the elderly."
Buhler said: "such a collective agreement would then also apply to commercial providers who have so far refused to sign collective agreements, i.E. Also to those companies for which profit maximization is more important than good working conditions and good care."