German cleaners' unions demand wage boost and respect on Cleaning Day

The IG BAU trade union is calling for a "Respekt- und Lohn‑Schub" (respect and wage boost) for building cleaners in two Bavarian districts ahead of the annual "Tag der Gebäudereinigung". Union leaders Bernhard Heizmann (Weißenburg‑Gunzenhausen) and Dieter Pangerl (Rosenheim) warn that low wages force cleaners to work more than 70 years to earn an average pension, describing the situation as "ein Armutszeugnis". They urge CSU and SPD Bundestag members from the regions to counteract the upcoming pension reform and demand a strong wage increase in the next collective‑bargaining round. The unions point to around 200 cleaners in Weißenburg‑Gunzenhausen and 520 in Rosenheim, pressing the 14 and 40 cleaning companies respectively to prepare for a substantial pay rise.