Unified or pluralistic collective bargaining - the consequences for the collective bargaining policy

An increasing number of occupational groups feel that the large trade unions no longer sufficiently represent their interests and have set up their own independent associations. The current issue of ifo Schnelldienst has queried experts as to whether the era of large collective-bargaining institutions and the principles of businesses with "unified wage agreements" has come to an end as well the impact that such fragmentation will have on the economy. Wolfgang Franz, ZEW, Mannheim, and member of the German Council of Economic Experts points out that the protection for pluralistic collective bargaining is guaranteed in the German constitution. This principle, of course, has detrimental economic consequences in the form of higher wage agreements and problems in enterprise management that can have planning uncertainties as a result. What is important is legislation to regulate labour disputes that takes into account not only the interests of employees but also the justifiable interests of employers. A stipulation is needed in the Collective Agreements Law that every wage contract must contain arrangements for functional conciliation procedures. For Norbert Berthold, University of Würzburg, the trend towards pluralistic collective bargaining is inevitable and irreversible. The era of relatively homogeneous economic development is over: industries, enterprises and employers are becoming more heterogeneous, and diverging developments of businesses in one industry branch require more decentralized company solutions.