Germany as an industrial location is in danger. In other countries, more investments are also being made due to more competitive conditions. Energetic countermeasures are required – otherwise there is a risk of devastating deindustrialization, further social division and an increasing radicalization of political debates and protests.
The metal and electrical industry is the heart of the economy. Almost 4 million people work in the approximately 25,000 companies in the industry. The industry generates 20 percent of all tax revenue and a third of all social security contributions. The M+E industry makes it possible for there to be a lot of efficient and well-paid jobs outside of the metropolises. We have customers and suppliers, but also employees and colleagues from all over the world. A further 2 million jobs directly depend on the industrial value creation in service providers and crafts. It is therefore the core of prosperity, the financing of the welfare state and social cohesion.
Strengthen the framework conditions for a competitive industry…
The union and employers are therefore very concerned that far too many location and investment decisions made by domestic and foreign companies are currently against Germany as a location. The repeated high net outflows are threatening symptoms of deindustrialization. M+E production is around 15 percent below the pre-crisis level in 2018. Current energy policy keeps costs high and, in particular, at least accepts the loss of energy-intensive primary industries as important parts of the industrial value chains. Production in energy-intensive industries in Germany has already collapsed by around 20 percent.
It is and remains the responsibility of companies to identify and exploit market opportunities. How these decisions turn out depends crucially on the underlying conditions. They must make competitive production possible. Above all, the federal government must ensure competitive energy costs and create more attractive investment conditions. Possible adjustment screws would include a restriction on network fees, a permanent reduction in electricity tax to the European minimum, an effective industrial electricity price, investment bonuses and the expansion of tax depreciation options.
We are also calling for accelerated infrastructure expansion in rural areas too – among other things. in renewable energies, charging stations, energy infrastructure and digital networks. This requires private and public investment, but also urgently requires the acceleration of planning and approval processes through digital and modern administrative procedures and by reducing procedural inefficiencies. A long-term raw materials strategy that combines strategic resilience and fair trade is also necessary.
…and attract skilled workers
The effects of demographic change have also long been noticeable. There is already a shortage of skilled workers in many places today and the problem will get worse: with an increasing trend, 80,000 to 100,000 M+E employees or 2 to 2.5 percent of the workforce will be leaving the workforce each year due to age. At the same time, one in eight training positions at M+E now remains unfilled – while almost 2.9 million young people between the ages of 20 and 35 do not have a formal professional qualification.
There is no question: it will be a major but necessary effort, a gigantic challenge for companies, the social partners, politics and society.
To achieve this, education must, above all, be transferred from political Sunday speeches into practical action. It is unforgivable that schools are not getting the attention and support they need. The fact that 50,000 young people every year – and the number is rising – leave school without a school leaving certificate is a disgrace for our society. Schools and vocational schools need more staff, better equipment, a sufficient budget and relief from administrative tasks, instead of constantly experimenting with school types. We need systematic support. The support should be linked to uniform minimum educational standards in the most important subjects and determined through adequate learning status surveys. The results must be used to optimize local school education. Comparability is the basis for being able to assign and remedy omissions.
The nationwide expansion of high-quality child care would enable more parents to combine work and family. The immigration of qualified specialists is also an important pillar. Language courses, easier recognition of foreign study and professional qualifications and the integration of families are essential adjustments here.
Unfortunately, Germany is not as attractive to foreign skilled workers, especially from third countries, as it would be in the competition for the brightest minds. Excessive bureaucracy, lengthy visa procedures, complex federal and state government structures, language, a poor welcoming culture and, last but not least, the gap between gross and net are examples of this. While the new Skilled Immigration Act is undoubtedly a step forward, it also requires a change in mentality in the authorities, clearer structures, comprehensive digitalization to significantly accelerate processes and reduce the burden on the authorities.
We need to strengthen in-company training for young people – especially through more practice-oriented career orientation. Detailed career and study orientation, combined with in-depth knowledge of operational processes and job profiles, is part of the framework curricula for all types of schools. A realistic idea of the professional world contributes to a well-founded career choice decision that takes the young people’s wishes and talents into account. The federal and state governments should therefore also strengthen public funding and human resources at youth employment agencies. Young people with special needs in particular need more and better support. Together, Gesamtmetall and IG Metall will exert their influence on companies and politics in order to improve the career prospects for these young people.
Added to this is the social importance of vocational training. We should all do our part to ensure that it is once again valued on an equal footing with academic education in society as a whole.
75 years of the Basic Law and collective bargaining autonomy
Finally, 75 years after the founding of the Federal Republic, the adoption of the Basic Law and the reintroduction of collective bargaining autonomy, the social partners of the M+E industry reaffirm their social responsibility and their joint contribution to the success of democracy and the social market economy. They will enter into a structured dialogue to strengthen the collective bargaining partnership.