According to the Verdi union, workers in Germany who provide cash transports started a nationwide strike on Monday that will continue in the coming days.
Armored car workers are currently negotiating wages and other benefits as part of industry-wide collective bargaining with transportation companies for cash and valuables. About 10,000 employees are covered by the contract.
The Verdi union said the strike will continue across the country until Tuesday and that workers in some German states will also be absent on Wednesday.
Verdi accused the industry group, the Federal Association of German Money and Security Services (BDGW), of failing to make an acceptable offer during the most recent talks on September 20.
“Instead, employers have stuck to their demands to worsen working conditions,” said Verdi’s chief negotiator, Sonja Austermühle.
For example, employers’ offers would include less vacation time for new employees.
The strike organized by Verdi is intended to increase pressure on employers in the run-up to the next round of negotiations on October 17 and 18.
The union demands overtime compensation for all hours worked in excess of eight hours per working day. She also demands a uniform holiday allowance of 31 days for all full-time workers and a Christmas bonus of half a gross monthly salary.
Verdi also demands significantly higher wages, peaking at 23 euros per hour in the western German states of North Rhine-Westphalia and Lower Saxony.
The employers’ organization had already defended itself against Verdi’s criticism, arguing that basic hourly wages in cash and valuable transport are already relatively high, between € 18.47 and € 21.18.