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Germany - Temporary employment pay rise comes into effect

April 29, 2011

Pay increases negotiated in March 2010 between the Association of Temporary Employment Agencies (BZA) and the Federation of German Unions (DGB) will come into effect on 1 May 2011 for 350,000 temporary employees in the country. Further pay increases will follow on 1 November 2011 and on 1 November 2012.

Temporary employees who carry out simple tasks in the Western Federal States of Germany will see their pay rise from 7.60 Euro per hour to 7.79 Euro per hour.

At the other end of the spectrum, temporary employees in the Western Federal States of Germany, who have a degree and several years of professional experience, will see an increase from 17.11 Euro per hour to 17.53 Euro per hour.

After an uninterrupted placement with a final hirer of nine months, pay will rise by a further +1.5%, after 12 months it will rise by +3%.

BZA Vice-President, Thomas Bäumer, commented "the wages we pay in the temporary employment sector are in line with the market but in many cases companies pay even more."

"[The new nationally binding minimum wage] for temporary employees prepares the industry and temporary employees very well for the opening of the labour market to staffing agencies from the new Eastern European Member States of the European Union on 1 May 2011."

Earlier this month, the members of BZA and the members of the Association of Medium-sized Temporary Employment Agencies (AMP), voted to merge their two associations into one new large organisation called BAP (Bundesarbeitgeberverband der Personaldienstleister).

As the legal successor to BZA and AMP, BAP has taken on the collective bargaining agreements negotiated by the two previous associations.

The new association has 1,852 corporate members, almost all of them temporary employment agencies. BAP now represents 80% of all temporary employment agency outlets in Germany, which account for more than half of all temporary employees in the country.