Germany’s IGBCE Gives Year-End Challenges

Hubertus Schmoldt, president of ICEM German affiliate IGBCE, drew attention to the challenges and opportunities facing the union movement in an end-of-the-year message. Schmoldt noted that international competition has grown stiffer with no let up in sight and said global trade union work stressing solidarity is welcome, but unions are only at the beginning of such positive developments. He described biogenetics and nanotechnology as key industries for the future but—particularly in the case of gene technology— Germany may soon lose research, development and production capacities. Schmoldt stressed the importance of education and training from early childhood to university levels as key.