As IG Metall goes....

IG Metall, Germany's largest industrial trade union, recently announced it wants a 6.5% raise this year for its members. This union sets the tone for all labor/corporation negotiations concerning pay and benefits. As IG Metall goes, so goes much of the rest of the country.

Therefore, employers are already saying they are concerned by the request. The union believes its members and concomitantly of course, all German workers are entitled to a good pay raise. The economy has been growing, profits and exports are up and unemployment has even dropped to 9.5% nationwide. The 3% rise in the value added tax earlier this year has also diminished people's purchasing power. How this negotiation plays out will have a large impact on the economy and people's spending in 2007.