In just over three months, the cumbersome Health Care Development Act, or GVWG for short, will also apply in Berlin. Then nursing homes and outpatient services are obliged to pay standard regional wages. This is the only way for the operators of homes and services to receive the necessary money from health insurance companies and social welfare offices, i.e. from the state. But it is still completely unclear in Berlin where wages are paid.
Neither the AOK, which is responsible for this, nor the Senate know how many of the 282 homes, 115 day and 16 short-term care facilities and 691 outpatient services in Berlin have been paying collective wages so far. This emerges from a response from Health Secretary Thomas Götz (Greens) to a request from Christian Gräff (CDU), which was available to the Tagesspiegel in advance. As reported, nurses are being sought across the city.
Actually, the operators of the homes and services should have informed the health insurers by April at the latest which collective agreement they are bound to or at least orientate themselves to. The Federal Ministry of Labor recently announced that 1.2 million women and men work in geriatric care nationwide, almost half of them receive collective wages. For others, the law would mean a salary increase for full-time employees of 300 euros a month. So many care providers will have to adjust – probably increase – their salaries from August. The situation is made even more complicated by the fact that, within the meaning of the GVWG, various collective agreements could be used, in the event of a dispute – lawyers say vaguely – an average value should apply.
Although trade unions in the industry have difficulty organizing employees, Verdi in particular has recently made progress. The service trade union also relies on the level of the collective agreement of the federal states (TVL) outside of public institutions.
The TVL provides: A nurse in the frequent salary level 4 receives 20.13 euros per hour, from December 20.70 euros. That results in almost 3465 euros full-time gross. Nursing assistants with one-year training receive 18.70 euros at this level, from December 19.22 euros per hour, full-time 3218 euros. Wages in non-tariff companies could now rise to this level. The co-payments of the insured will probably be increased. Few doubt that in the tills.
