GERMANY: The IMF's 2.9 million-strong German metalworkers' affiliate, IG Metall, has launched an initiative aimed at establishing a more just distribution of social wealth in Germany.
Based on the fact that income from capital has increased by 39 per cent between 1991 and 1998, whereas net wages have only risen by 18 per cent, IG Metall's vice-president, Jürgen Peters says that Germany's gross national product has almost doubled in the 1990s, reaching close to DM 7 trillion, without any change in the socially unjust distribution of this created wealth. The upper 10 per cent of German households own almost half of the total wealth. On the other hand, every 11th citizen is living in poverty.
The IG Metall initiative, called "fair teilen" -- or "fair sharing" -- will reach its goal in part through collective bargaining. The union is also looking for an alliance with political parties, churches and civic groups. Peters has asked potential partners of IG Metall to enter into a dialogue on how to achieve a fairer distribution of Germany's social wealth.