Trade unions in Germany

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Trade unions in Germany have a history reaching back to the German revolution in 1848, and still play an important role in the German economy and society.

The most important labor organization is the German Confederation of Trade Unions (Deutscher Gewerkschaftsbund, or DGB), which is the umbrella association of eight single trade unions for individual economic sectors, representing more than 6 million people as of 2014^[update]. The largest single trade union is the IG Metall, which as of 2014^[update] organizes about 2.3 million members in metal (including automobile and machine building), electronics, steel, textile, wood and synthetics industries.

In 2022, half of all German workers were covered by collective bargaining agreements.^[1] In Germany, unions and employer associations bargain at the industry-region level.^[1] These large-scale agreements have broad coverage and lead to considerable standardization in wages and employment conditions across the country.^[1] Some bargaining occurs at the firm level.^[1]