This was the reaction of the OGBL President Nora Back to statements made by LCGB President Patrick Dury during an interview with our colleagues from RTL Radio on Tuesday morning. Back recalled that this was already the case at the tripartite meeting in March, but that positions had subsequently diverged on the measures.
She welcomed the LCGB’s clear commitment to the wage indexation system. But unlike the LCGB, which has not yet taken a firm position on the postponement of certain wage indexations, the OGBL is adamant that they reject any such action. According to Back, the ongoing inflation and the war in Ukraine confirm the OGBL’s position: the wage indexation scheme is not the problem, and the purchasing power of the population must be strengthened and only those companies that are struggling should be helped.
Dury told our colleagues from RTL Radio on Tuesday morning that securing jobs and purchasing power are the two priorities for the LCGB. While Back stated that the OGBL is also making sure that jobs are safe, she pointed out that the employers’ argument is that social benefits must be eliminated to secure jobs. The OGBL President argued that unemployment is currently at a low level, as is the number of new bankruptcies, and the economy is also growing.
The president of the General Confederation of the Civil Service (CGFP), Romain Wolff, explained on Tuesday morning that he will only make a statement after the meetings with the other trade unions and the government on Thursday. Wolff did, however, already state a fortnight ago on RTL Radio that the deferral of wage indexations must be stopped.
