Lidl and Kaufland workers unite behind goal for global agreement   

Lidl and Kaufland commerce unions from across Europe and the USA have agreed to join forces to push for a global agreement between German multinational parent company, Schwarz Group, and UNI Global Union. Workers want to use the agreement to improve working conditions, freedom of association and collective bargaining across Schwarz’s operations.

Schwarz Group is the biggest food retailer in Europe and the third largest food retailer at the global level with a combined workforce of 575,000 workers and a network of 13,900 stores. The Group has two main subsidiaries; Lidl, which is present in 30 countries across Europe and the USA; and Kaufland, which operates in eight European countries.

The decision to campaign for a global agreement came at the first meeting of the UNI Commerce Schwarz Group Organizing Network, hosted in Amsterdam by UNI’s Dutch affiliate FNV in September. The meeting brought together trade unions organizing or representing Lidl and Kaufland workers from Belgium, Croatia, Czechia, Finland, France, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Moldova, the Netherlands, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden and the USA.

“We are excited to host trade unions from both Lidl and Kaufland for the first time here in The Netherlands,” said FNV President, Tuur Elzinga. “Our collective power will make a big difference for Lidl and Kaufland workers”.

UNI Commerce presented participants with the key findings from its survey of the working conditions, trade union rights and the state of collective bargaining at the Schwarz Group. Gathering information together from over 20 countries, the survey found serious issues including violation of trade union rights, weak social dialogue, shortcomings in conduct of due diligence, high workload and occupational health and safety concerns, among other issues.  

“Lidl workers face intense workloads and pressure not only in the Netherlands but across Europe and the USA,” said Fatma Bugdayci-Karatas of FNV. “It is crucial that we unite internationally to secure a global agreement, so we no longer have to fight the same battles in different countries to achieve the fair working conditions our workers deserve.”

The meeting was concluded with the decision to establish a committee and contact the Group’s management over the issues identified by the survey.

“We will approach Schwarz Group to present the alarming findings of this survey and urge them to engage with us and our affiliates,” said Mathias Bolton, Head of UNI Commerce. “Our global framework agreements with other major retailers have proven instrumental in ensuring respect for trade union rights, and in securing decent working conditions and fair pay.”

The meeting also included a workshop on organizing, which addressed the key challenges identified in the survey and strategies to overcome them.

“UNI will continue supporting our affiliates with more training sessions and organizing campaigns across multiple countries,” said Adrian Durtschi, Head of UNI SCORE. “We are committed to transforming these challenges into opportunities to build stronger union power for Lidl and Kaufland workers.”