These are the topics for 2025

Works councils from the security sector discussed the priorities for 2025 at a conference initiated by the trade union vida. The most important fixed point of the year: the collective agreement negotiations in autumn.

In the security sector, there are some points that should improve in the interests of employees. The trade union vida therefore invited to the works council conference on 29 January 2025 to discuss the current challenges facing employees. 109 participants accepted the invitation. Vida Chairman Roman Hebenstreit opened the conference with motivating words: "You are the most important multipliers for our movement. The more we are, the higher the level of organization in your industry, the more we can make a difference."

Preparation for collective bargaining negotiations

The trade union vida is committed to the concerns of the employees in the negotiations of the collective agreements (KV). To ensure this, members and works councils are regularly involved in decision-making processes. The works council conference at the end of January offered an opportunity to work out the central points for the collective bargaining negotiations in autumn. A survey of those present showed that the topics of employment groups, multiple use and calculation are currently the most burning issues for the works councils.

The security topics in detail

With a revision of the employment groups, the respective classification should become clearly comprehensible for each employee. In addition, it is intended to lead to employees only falling into the lower income category for a short time and being classified higher after a certain training phase.

Multiple assignments mean that a guard can be deployed in different employment groups – regardless of their qualifications. In practice, this often leads to wage dumping because employees are not paid according to their training. In addition, there are tasks and areas of responsibility that go beyond the security activity; e.g. fetching coffee or clearing away manure. This impairs the employees in the performance of their actual activities - and is simply not what they are paid for as security guards.

The calculation for full-time employees was abolished in the guard in 2021, but was up for discussion again immediately afterwards. Employers would like to introduce a one-year calculation. This would mean that overtime would not be paid during this period, but would be compensated as compensatory time. For security companies, this would bring maximum flexibility at the expense of employees: They could assign their employees when they need them and deny them services when the order situation is worse. "This means that as an employee you are on call," explains vida department chairman Gernot Kopp. So there can be no talk of work-life balance and self-determined time management.

Guards are indispensable

"It is the human factor that counts in the guarding," clarifies vida department secretary Ursula Woditschka at the conference. Without guards, most events would not exist, nor would security in public institutions. Employees and works council members in the security industry therefore have every reason to courageously stand up for better working conditions.