Employment and Social Affairs

Employment in the natural resources sector

The extractive industry provides industrial jobs in a variety of different occupations and activities. At the end of 2023 (2024), around 58,000 people (56,000 people)¹ were employed in the extractive industry. This corresponds to around 0.17% (0.16%) of all employees in Germany subject to social security contributions. At around 65% (66%), most employees worked in the quarrying and other mining sector, followed by the provision of services for mining and quarrying at around 15% (16%).

Role of the legislator

In principle, the German legislature regulates a uniform (minimum) level of protection for employees (e.g. working hours, holidays, protection against dismissal, protection laws for young people, pregnant women or the severely disabled, safety and health at work, etc.).² Above this level of protection, the social partners are free to regulate working conditions independently for the company or the respective sector within the framework of their collective bargaining autonomy guaranteed by Article 9(3) of the German Basic Law.

Statutory social security provides protection against life risks such as unemployment, illness, dependency on nursing care, accident and occupational disease as well as old-age security. In particular, employees are insured under the social security scheme; self-employed persons are partially covered by this scheme. Social insurance funds are mainly raised through contributions from insured persons and employers. An exception is the statutory accident insurance, which is financed exclusively by the employer. Some branches of social security are additionally financed by taxes. The social security institutions are corporations with legal capacity under public law with self-government. Self-government is generally exercised by the insured persons and the employers.

The role and cooperation of the social partners

Co-Determination

One of the main pillars of the social market economy in Germany is co-determination, i.e. the right of employees and their stakeholders to participate in company or entrepreneurial decisions. The scope and form of participation differ according to company size, legal form and industry.

Company co-determination goes furthest in mining and in the iron and steel producing industry (Co-determination in the coal, iron and steel industry: (MontanMitbestG (Act on Co-Determination in the Coal, Iron and Steel Industry)³, MontanMitbestGErgG (Supplementary Co-Determination Act)⁴): Here, the supervisory boards are made up of an equal number of shareholder and employee representatives. In addition, a labour director is appointed, who is responsible for personnel and social affairs as an equal member of the management. According to the MontanMitbestG, his/her appointment is subject to the approval of the majority of employee representatives in the supervisory board.

For other companies, which are managed in the legal form of a corporation or a cooperative, the equal representation of employees and shareholders in the supervisory bodies according to the Co-Determination Act (MitbestG) also applies in case of more than 2,000 employees. However, there are two significant differences compared to the co-determination in the coal, iron and steel industry.

If there is a tie in votes, the Chairman of the Supervisory Board, who is generally attributable to the shareholders, has the casting vote. This dual voting right of the Chairman of the Supervisory Board effectively overrides the formal parity between employees and employers. In addition, the labour director can in principle also be appointed against the votes of the employee representatives on the supervisory board. To companies with 500 to 2,000 employees, the one third participation of employee representatives on the supervisory board (DrittelbG⁵) applies.

Company co-determination is governed by the Works Constitution Act. In every company in Germany with at least five employees, employees have the right to elect a works council. As representative of all employees, the works council represents the interests of the employees vis-à-vis the employer. It has different rights of participation, especially in social, personnel and economic matters. Works agreements are a key instrument in the work of the works council. Similar to collective agreements, they are legally binding agreements between the employer and the works council and regulate the employment relationship of the employees. Frequent topics are regulations on working hours, occupational health and safety, health promotion, data protection or further training, which are tailored to the conditions prevailing in the company. However, the works council must also be involved in the introduction of new technical equipment and work processes or the drawing up of social plans in the event of planned operational changes.

Collective bargaining coverage

Freedom of association and the right to collective bargaining are guaranteed in Germany by Article 9 of the Basic Law. Collective agreements are concluded by one or more employers or employers’ associations with one or more trade unions. They are binding only on their members (collective bargaining coverage). However, it is common practice for employers bound by collective agreements to allow employees who are not unionised to participate in what has been agreed by collective agreement by referring to the relevant collective agreements in individual contracts. In addition, many companies that are not bound by collective agreements are guided by existing collective agreements. In 2023 (2024), 39% (28%) of the companies in the extractive sector⁶ were bound by collective agreements; 28% (20%) within the framework of a regional collective agreement and 8% (in 2024) with a company collective agreement.⁷ In 2024, the collective agreements apply to 59% of employees in the sector, with 21% subject to the terms of a regional collective agreement and 37% subject to those of a company collective agreement.⁸

Training

The demanding activities in the extractive industry require well-trained specialist personnel. In the years 2023 (2024), approximately 74% (75%) of employees had a recognised vocational qualification⁹, and another 11% (12%) had an academic degree¹⁰ in, for example, engineering.

Vocational training in Germany is essentially carried out via the dual vocational training system, in which trainees acquire practical competences at the same time as they work in the company and are taught general and theoretical knowledge at the vocational school. The duration of training depends on the respective profession and varies between two and three and a half years. During this time, the trainee receives a training allowance from the company. After successful completion of the training, you are qualified to work directly as a qualified specialist.

The sector provides training in a number of different professions. These include, for example, mechatronics technicians, electronics technicians, industrial and process mechanics, reprocessing mechanics, miners and machine operators, mining technologists and industrial clerks. At the reporting date¹¹, 1,998 (1,909) of the employees in the extractive industry were trainees, which corresponds to a training rate of 3.4% (3.4%). The training rate in the sector was therefore below the German average of 4.5% (4.6%). Looking at individual sectors, the picture for the extractive industries is relatively differentiated. For example, the training rates in the mining and quarrying industry fluctuate (from 0.8% (0.5%) to 4.9% (4.3%) (2023 (2024)) because the importance of training occupations varies and the proportion of semi-skilled workers varies accordingly.

Level of earnings

The average gross monthly earnings of full-time employees in the sector amounted to €4,951 per month in 2024, with an additional €742 per month in special payments.¹⁷ This means that average monthly earnings in the extractive sector are a good 9.5% higher than the average in the manufacturing and service sectors.¹⁸ Due to the income tax to be deducted and the proportionate social security contributions to be paid, employees’ individually disposable net wages are significantly lower than their gross wages.¹⁹

The average paid weekly working time was 40.5 hours, which was relatively high compared to the manufacturing industry and service industry as a whole, at 38.9 hours.²⁰

In Germany, equality between women and men is protected by constitutional law. A key component of this is the requirement of equal pay for women and men for equal work and work of equal value. This means that gender-specific income differences in particular must be further reduced. This is also the aim of the Act on the Promotion of Pay Transparency between Women and Men (Pay Transparency Act (Entgelttransparenzgesetz (EntgTranspG))). Among other things, it includes an individual right to information for employees, reporting obligations for large companies and the requirement for large private employers to carry out company audit procedures to review pay structures.

The planned further development of the Pay Transparency Act will also take into account the EU Pay Transparency Directive, which entered into force in June 2023. The directive must be transposed into national law by June 2026. In 2024, the average gross monthly earnings of €5,900 of women in the extractive industry were 3.6% higher than the average gross monthly earnings of male employees (€5,669).²¹

Diversity and equal opportunities

The different life experiences and work horizons of employees make a significant contribution to the economic success of companies. By consciously promoting diversity, companies can tap into an important success and competitive factor that has a positive impact on both companies and their workforces.

Diversity can be measured using a range of quantitative indicators, such as the proportion of women among all employees and managers, the proportion of foreign employees or the age structure of the workforce.

At the end of 2023 (2024), the proportion of women among those employed in the sector subject to social security contributions was 13.7% (13.7%). Foreign nationals accounted for 6.7% (7.2%) of the total workforce.²²

The proportion of female supervisory board members in the mining industry is very low at 20.3% (2022 financial year). Of the management board members of these companies, only 14.3% are women. Details of publicly available data on the participation of women in management and the two highest levels of management, as well as on the supervisory board of companies reporting to D-EITI, are disclosed at [Link] . In order to further increase the proportion of women in the workforce and in management positions, there is also a great need for action compared to other sectors. It should be noted that the employment structure is traditionally characterised by male-dominated technical training occupations and degree courses.²³

At 61.4% (2023) (61.1% (2024)), the 25 to under 55 age group made up by far the largest proportion of the workforce, followed by the 55 to under 65 age group at 30.1% (2023) (29.9% (2024)). 7.4% (2023) (7.4% (2024)) of the employees were younger than 25 years and 1.3% (2023) (1.6% (2024)) of the employees were older than 65.

Equal opportunities in Germany are promoted by the General Equal Treatment Act (AGG) . It prohibits discrimination in employment on grounds of race or ethnic origin, sex, religion or belief, disability, age or sexual identity. The Federal Ministry for Education, Family Affairs, Senior Citizens, Women and Youth (BMBFSFJ) provides continuous information on its website on key aspects of gender equality policy in Germany.

{acf_content_section_2}

{acf_quellenangaben}