Trade unions threatening supermarket strikes in the run-up to Christmas

Trade unions CNV and FNV are threatening with supermarket strikes in the run-up to Christmas. The unions are unhappy with the employers’ final wage offer, and supermarket workers are increasingly willing to strike, they told Distrifood.

Last week, the employers affiliated with the collective bargaining agreements VGL and the food industry made a final offer of increasing wages by 3 percent as of 1 January 2024. CNV aimed for a 6.5 percent increase and FNV for a 6 percent bump and 25 euros nominal per hour.

A 3 percent increase “falls hopefully short of any purchasing power you can think of. It is clear that we will not sign this proposal,” CNV director Jacqueline Twerda told Distrifood. She added that her union’s members are increasingly willing to strike. “We don’t have much choice.”

FNV negotiator Michiel Al said the same. “Can you just buy your Christmas meal at the supermarket in December? That could be a lot more difficult this year,” he said.

In addition to a higher wage increase, the trade unions also want 18 to 20-year-old supermarket employees to no longer fall under the youth wage, which is lower than the minimum wage for adults. FNV would also like more concrete agreements on safe working conditions in supermarkets.