IG Metall Warning Strikes Halt Berlin Metal Plants

On Monday, 2 November, IG Metall called workers in Berlin's metal and electrical industry out on warning strikes. From 9 a.m., roughly 200 employees at plants along Daimlerstraße in Marienfelde — including Mercedes-Benz, Gillette, Schindler, and Tepper — walked off the job. Half an hour later, Rheinmetall workers in Wedding joined the strike outside the gates of the former Pierburg plant on Schererstraße, where the defence company has been manufacturing artillery shell casings for about a year. Employees from Bosch Security Systems, Siemens Global Energy, and Siemens Mobility also laid down their tools during the day.

The walkout follows an offer made last Thursday by the VME, the Berlin-Brandenburg metal and electrical employers' association, which the union rejected outright. The VME's proposal — branded "Strengthening Location and Investment" — contains no wage increase for 2027, only a voluntary one-off payment, with a 1.3 percent rise not kicking in until July 2028. Economists forecast inflation of up to 3 percent in Germany next year and the ifo Institute projects a further 2.3 percent for 2028, meaning the offer would deliver a real-terms pay cut in both years.

IG Metall regional leader Jan Otto, who covers Berlin, Brandenburg, and Saxony, described the offer as "disappointing and out of touch with reality." The union is demanding 5 percent more pay over 12 months for the roughly 96,000 workers it represents in the region, along with job-security guarantees and a negotiated profit-sharing arrangement.