The draft proposals for amendments to the Metal and Electrical Industry collective labor agreement (CLA) effective January 1, 2026, have been finalized. Based on everyone's input—for which we sincerely thank—the National Board for the Metal Sector (LBM), through constructive consultation, has formulated the following proposal. The full draft proposal can be found here. here We hope you recognize yourself in the points we want to commit to. You may notice that a significant number of the points are similar to the commitment we made a year and a half ago. This is because we agreed on a so-called "money" collective labor agreement at the time, with few substantive or qualitative agreements. The wishes of the constituents, LBM, and De Unie didn't suddenly disappear. Below are the main points of our efforts.
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Commitment along three pillars
The deployment of De Unie we have done this along three overarching pillars:
- Working conditions and industrial relations;
- Sustainable employability and working conditions;
- Job and salary structures.
Terms of employment and employment relationships
Our terms of employment and labor relations, for example, concern our wage demand: 7,5% for 2026. But we also need to consider sectoral minimum regulations for internship allowances, home-working allowances, and commuting expenses. We also want to align provisions regarding overtime, additional work, and holiday pay with legislation and regulations following recent amendments and court rulings.
Sustainable employability and working conditions
This second pillar includes agreements that De Unie aims to create an age-independent generational pact that is recognizable and accessible to all employees covered by collective labor agreements in the Metal and Electrical Industry. This includes supplements to maternity leave, accessible parental leave, and caregiver leave. It also includes an 80/90/100 scheme accessible to everyone and an early retirement scheme that is not linked to a salary level that would exclude you from participation.
Job and salary structures
This means that De Unie Ensuring that job descriptions reflect the work people perform. We hear and see that job descriptions are poorly maintained. Decay occurs and disrepair takes hold. Due to changes in tasks not listed in job descriptions, but which could potentially lead to a revaluation of the position, employees may miss out on a higher salary. De Unie Therefore, advocates for stipulating in the collective bargaining agreement that the job structure be periodically maintained. Employees also play an active role in this process, in accordance with the collective bargaining agreement system. Better recognition and thus acknowledgement of hard work will lead to increased job satisfaction, loyalty, and productivity.
Let us know what you think of the proposals
Members with a Complete or Extra membership have received an invitation to vote. Voting is possible until August 11, 2025.
Closing comments
Several responses pointed out to advocate Gertjan Tommel that not everything can be captured in a collective bargaining agreement. Some requests are explicitly addressed by a works council or should be included in a MB collective bargaining agreement (MB-CAO) or a company-specific arrangement. Or they are even already covered by the collective bargaining agreement. He hasn't yet been able to contact everyone with a response. He hopes to address this after his summer break (August 18th).
