On 23 March, State Secretary Lilian Tschan welcomed high-ranking trade union representatives from Germany and Great Britain to the Federal Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs. The General Secretary of the Trade Union Congress (TUC), Paul Nowak, was visiting Germany from Great Britain at the invitation of the German Trade Union Confederation (DGB) to explore opportunities for bilateral cooperation.
After years of cautious bridge-building following Brexit, German-British relations are becoming closer again thanks to the Kensington Treaty signed last year.
State Secretary Tschan emphasised that the enhanced cooperative efforts should not be confined to government-level engagement, but should include civil society and the social partners: "It is a very positive sign that the TUC and the DGB have identified areas of common ground for future joint projects within the framework of the Treaty on Friendship and Bilateral Cooperation."
Both trade union umbrella organisations indicated they were open to an in-depth German-British exchange on topics such as youth unemployment, training and further education and the use of artificial intelligence in the workplace.
In addition to the important security and economic issues, the Kensington Treaty also includes employment and social policy. The focus in these areas is on promoting inclusive labour markets and ensuring that the digital transformation is carried out in a fair manner, particularly with regard to the human-centered use of artificial intelligence in the workplace. State Secretary Tschan remarked: "Together, we will ensure that structural change is equitable. To achieve this, we need an inclusive, sustainable approach to labour markets and social policy."
The labour ministries of Germany and Great Britain are already working closely together to expand their cooperation and the exchange of ideas on topics of common interest.