Digital Economy
First IG Metall Confidants Elected at MBition
20.06.2025 | For the first time, IG Metall members at MBition, a Berlin-based subsidiary of Mercedes-Benz, have elected a body of confidants. While no collective agreement is currently in place, the six elected colleagues are sending a clear message: If it says Mercedes on the outside, it needs to have a collective agreement on the inside.
For the first time, IG Metall confidants have been elected at Mercedes subsidiary MBition in Berlin - pic: IGM
One colleague even ran for election digitally - pic: IGM
Since last week, there has been an IG Metall confidant body at MBition. The wholly owned subsidiary of Mercedes-Benz Group AG employs around 800 people in Berlin and develops infotainment software. So far, no collective agreement applies to the company.
At a mid-June IG Metall members’ meeting, six confidants were elected. Confidants are active IG Metall members in the workplace, elected by their fellow members. They serve as contact persons for the union within the company and voluntarily advocate for their colleagues.
Together with the IG Metall members on the works council, confidants are the face of IG Metall in the workplace. They support their colleagues with all kinds of workplace issues and organize union activities. They promote IG Metall’s agenda, assist with works council elections, and are the driving force behind collective bargaining initiatives.
Despite being 100% owned by the Mercedes-Benz Group AG, MBition currently has no collective agreement. Since early last year, however, IG Metall has built a strong foundation in the company, as clearly demonstrated by the results of the works council elections in April. The workforce’s stated goals include fair and transparent pay and employment conditions. Among the key concerns: a 40-hour workweek instead of the industry-standard 35 hours, significantly lower pay compared to the collective agreement for the metal and electrical industries, no special bonuses, and no collectively agreed days off. These are all issues the IG Metall members at MBition want to address. The election of a confidant body is a major step in that direction.
Jan Otto, head secretary of IG Metall Berlin: "We congratulate our colleagues on their election — and the IG Metall members at MBition on gaining a strong union presence in their workplace! This is a big step toward a collective agreement. At Mercedes, having confidants and IG Metall agreements is a given — and that should apply to the subsidiaries as well. The message is clear: If it says Mercedes, it must come with a collective agreement."