The trade union launched its campaign at the Maison du Peuple in Esch-sur-Alzette on Tuesday morning. The main points of the OGBL's campaign are to fight for a 10% raise of the minimum wage, collective agreements for all, and a sixth week of vacation days.
At the Maison du Peuple, the Confederation of Independent Trade Unions of Luxembourg, presented its candidates as well as its programme. The OGBL is offering candidates in eight of the nine groups to be voted in on 12 March. In terms of the railway sector, the OGBL will not offer any candidates, but instead will support the National Federation of Railroad Workers, Transport Workers, Civil Servants and Employees’s candidates.
In addition to the core points, they are advocating secure pensions and jobs, a fairer taxation system, affordable living space, and climate protection.
The president of the OGBL, André Roeltgen, hopes to see his trade union's representation in the Chamber of Employees and as staff representations increase in March.
All companies with more than 15 employees will have to organise elections for their own staff representatives and members of the Chamber of Employees on 12 March 2019.
According to Roeltgen, the Chamber of Employees elections are the largest democratic elections in Luxembourg. If statistics are correct, 525,000 people vote, which is double the amount of the voters for the legislative elections. The reason for the large number of voters is that voters do not just make up employees from Luxembourg, but also cross-border workers and pensioners.
Roeltgen stressed the importance of the Chamber of Employees for Luxembourg’s employees and took the opportunity to remind the audience at the Maison du Peuple that the OGBL has had an absolute majority in the chamber since the first elections. In 2013, when the last social elections took place, the OGBL gained 38 out of 60 mandates, but hopes to gain more votes in March.
As for the elections of staff representatives, in 2013 the OGBL had around 2,000 voted delegates. However, Roeltgen stressed that here too, the confederation would aim for better numbers. Promoting the confederation, Roeltgen said that the OGBL has the highest degree of efficiency in representing the interests of all employees.
Social elections also have a crucial knock-on effect, as bosses and the government pay close attention to the elections and notice, whether the OGBL has been strengthened or weakened.
