With Claus-Harald Güster

We need to protect

our social gains

While Claus-Harald Güster, vice president of Germany's Food and Gastronomy Workers Union (Nahrung-Genuss-Gaststätten - NGG), won't be attending the Buenos Aires Conference, he spoke with SIREL about certain trends that are shaping the dairy sector in Germany, namely the elimination of production companies and jobs, and the possibilities of protecting the workers' social benefits.

 

-Who will be representing NGG at the Buenos Aires Conference?

-Since unfortunately I won't be able to be there myself, due to a conflict at Coca-Cola, the NGG delegation will include Peter Störling, who's in charge of our Dairy Workers Department, and two other members: Franz Morgret and Ernst Valentin.

 

-In general terms, how do you see the situation of the dairy sector in Germany and Europe?

-Germany is the leading dairy producer in the EU, with 33,000 workers. But that number is dropping steadily. We're working against that trend.

 

There's a structural transformation underway today, which, among other aspects, is reflected in the fact that in the past fifteen years the number of dairy farms has been halved, with the greatest reduction happening over the last five years.

 

At the same time, the number of milk processing companies has been reduced by two-thirds, a process that was accompanied by huge job cuts. More than 10,000 workers in the dairy industry lost their jobs in that period. 

 

But there's another situation that seriously affects us: in global terms, our dairy producers operate in small units. Producers are highly exposed to pressure from retailers; they're caught up in a race to lower prices, including dairy product prices. A liter of milk and half a kilo of butter are among the list of goods that retailers choose to lower in order to attract customers. To do that they pressure producers to cut their prices so severely they no longer reflect their real value.

 

-What problems and challenges do producers and the labor movement face?

-Producers are forced to abandon their small-scale production and need to adjust to business policies, because, like dairy processing sites, they have to deal with five retail companies with a large number of stores. Hence the need to move towards greater concentration. I don't see any other alternative.

 

As for dairy processing sites, we've signed Collective Bargaining Agreements that reflect what we've achieved in our negotiations with employers in terms of social benefits. So any person who finds a position as a skilled worker after completing the three-year training program in the dairy industry will earn approximately 2,200 euros (2,800 US dollars) a month.

 

The average workweek is 38 hours. Workers also enjoy other general benefits, such as annual leave, bonuses, vacation pay and additional premiums such as night work, overtime, and other supplementary payments. So we have a number of social gains for which we fought. 

 

-And what about trade union membership?

-Of the 33,000 workers in the sector, some 13,000 are members of NGG. It's a good level of unionization, but it could be better. Moreover, there are companies with a high rate of unionization and others with a low rate.

 

In many companies, then, there are possibilities of fighting to defend these gains, so that workers won't suffer the consequences of the changes the market is undergoing . 

 

-Is the concentration of the dairy industry also an issue in Germany?

-There are major companies in Germany, the largest being Nordmilch, but there's also the Müller group, Humana, Hochwald and others. Nordmilch and Humana are implementing some kind of shared services; the two companies opened a sales office in North Germany, for example. Something's happening there. Still, the sales of the three largest European players in the sector -Arla (Denmark), Campina (Netherlands) and Lactalis (France)- are three times higher. 

 

-What are your expectations for the Buenos Aires Conference?

-Above all we hope it'll be a chance to learn about other situations; I would've liked to receive the information firsthand, but I have to speak from the perspective of someone who won't be attending.

 

I would have liked to learn what's happening in other countries, in the southern hemisphere; and I also would've liked to contribute to discussions. Our delegation will be in charge of presenting and conveying the situation in Europe.

 

I'm personally interested in seeing how other labor organizations defend the rights of their workers and what gains they achieve, because I think such gains could be very useful as reference points to guide our actions.

 

We have to ask ourselves: In which cases did an organization effectively represent its workers' interests? And, what useful lessons can such experiences contribute? It would be very arrogant to think that we're the only ones with something to teach others. On the contrary, we need to know about any successful agreements subscribed with companies, about all the collective bargaining agreements that exist, and what labor-management relations are like elsewhere. Anyone trained in the German model of co-management will always be interested in learning what labor-management relations are like in other cases 

 

-What role can the IUF play?

-I think the IUF can play a major role, as it can help further expand our common information base. That's the role it has. And it can advance in this sense by contributing to enhance information-sharing efforts at the Conference.

 

It's a key aspect, even considering what I said earlier: we don't always have the opportunity of flying all the way across the world to see how things are in situ.

 

Just today I visited Rel-UITA's website to learn more about certain issues, and I think it's important that such information is available, and that it be complemented with direct contacts. It's something we obviously need to do.