ROUNDUP: collective agreement for the digital elite: IG Metall and Bosch are in agreement. | message

GERLINGEN / LUDWIGSBURG (dpa-AFX) – Open areas, sofas, ping-pong tables, loft atmosphere and the inevitable foosball – it's about big agile small businesses to future ideas on the subject scan reasons, these details of furnishing are a must. But it's not enough to find qualified staff, says Bosch. For a new entity specializing in mobility services, such as car sharing, the IG Metall union and the supplier of the automotive industry have now negotiated a new collective agreement. It should also serve as a model for other areas of Bosch.

The so-called innovation collective agreement is based on IG Metall's contracts, but offers more flexibility in terms of working time and salary. In addition, employees receive special offers on health care and continuing education.

In order to recruit highly qualified staff for the digital switchover, Bosch needs good working conditions, said Christoph Kübel, head of Bosch's staff for the German news agency. "We need freedom and self-determination and with this collective agreement we create the right conditions." Bosch now employs one out of two jobs outside production with software and computer experts.

Large companies usually set up software and scanning areas to avoid sluggish corporate structures and, in most cases, collective bargaining. The managers often look for the image of the outboard in addition to the group of large tankers. Flexible work schedules play as important a role as pay.

At IG Metall, there is concern about this development. "We want these areas to be grouped together," said Roman Zitzelsberger, District Manager Baden-Württemberg. The union is therefore discussing with several companies about similar contracts.

Martina Weiner, CEO of HR Consulting i-potentials, warns – digital experts are specialized professionals: "In some areas, there is only a handful of these specialists around the world. "Under a collective agreement and badociated terms, a company may lose competitiveness.

And IG Metaller Zitzelsberger admits: "The worlds meet". With Bosch, the union is now trying to bring these worlds closer together. The new collective agreement is valid from 2019 for the new Connected Mobility Solutions unit with 300 employees. Under the supervision of Robert Bosch GmbH, employees who were previously included in the tariff as well as those who were not yet covered by the collective agreement are working on it.

As usual in the Bosch group, they have the choice between 35, 38 or 40 hours a week. But one applies the time of work of confidence, the employee decides independently, when he works how much. When paying, the settlements are based on the existing collective agreement of IG Metall. But instead of rigid wage groups, there are salary scales. For example, performance-based pay is higher. In addition, employees receive a full health check every two years, which is otherwise only available to executives, and can freely have their own training budget.

But is it enough to attract young software developers to the Bosch Swabian technology group near Stuttgart, rather than to a start-up in Berlin or Tel Aviv? Maren Freyberg of Hamburg's recruitment consultancy, Dwight Cribb, said: "I can imagine that it is charming for many." After all, security also plays a role for some candidates. "At least, it's a unique selling point." And that's the table tennis plate just no more