10 and 11 March 2026 from 5:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
at the BI Cube (4414) and the LPC break room (2032)
Please bring your company ID badge.
Employees who will be absent on the election days may request postal voting documents by email at
brbikg@boehringer-ingelheim.com
Dear Colleagues
The past few years have demanded a great deal from all of us. The pandemic, global crises and far‑reaching change have shaped our day‑to‑day working lives and noticeably altered the conditions at the Ingelheim site. Especially in times like these, a capable and reliable Works Council is more important than ever.
Security has been at the heart of our work — first and foremost safeguarding jobs at the Ingelheim site. There have been numerous restructuring measures, in some cases involving substantial changes for those affected. At the same time, we ensured that over four challenging years there were no redundancies for operational reasons. To make sure this remains the case in the future, we will continue to provide security for all employees at the site through our commitment in the years ahead.
At the same time, we achieved strong collective bargaining results even in difficult times. This means that all employees at Boehringer Ingelheim are well positioned compared with the rest of the sector. Even during periods of inflation, purchasing power has been protected. This is what we fight for in every round of negotiations.
Our working world is changing. We will actively support and shape the changes brought about by transformation, digitalisation and everything else that lies ahead — always in the interest of all employees. We stand for modern and fair working conditions. Our focus is always the same: ensuring that you continue to have a protected, secure and positive working environment.
We are convinced that qualification and professional development are the best way forward. The vast expertise of all employees at Boehringer Ingelheim is a guarantee of growth, the quality of our products and our most important competitive advantage as a site. This is how we secure business success and good jobs. That is why, as IGBCE representatives on the Works Council, we remain firmly and consistently committed to comprehensive qualification and further training measures.
We advocate for a form of flexibility that brings people together — enabling colleagues who come to us from abroad to remain flexible in the future as well. Anyone who wishes should have the option to work from abroad for a defined period, for example to extend time spent with family. In this way, we create room to better reconcile professional responsibilities with personal needs.
The future of our industry is also shaped by federal policy. In a changing political landscape and in view of the ongoing debate about creating the right conditions to secure jobs in Germany, we as a trade union are committed at both state and federal level to keeping the site competitive.
Our team reflects Boehringer Ingelheim: experienced colleagues and new candidates from all areas of the business. This allows us to represent the many different perspectives at the site. Together, we share the ambition to continue shaping our company actively in the years to come — for our convictions, for security, and for strong solidarity.
• For job security.
• For fair pay.
• For a working world shaped around employees’ needs.
• For high‑quality qualification and training opportunities.
• For political framework conditions that support good work.
• For a Works Council that keeps everyone in view.
List 3 – For the interests of all colleagues
Codetermination must never be a question of status, contract type or occupational group. Our list stands for a Works Council that is there for everyone: employees covered by collective agreements and those outside them, colleagues with vocational training as well as academic qualifications, fixed‑term employees as well as temporary agency staff, people with decades of professional experience and apprentices who have only just started.
List 3 – Strongest together
Fragmentation into small interest groups that each pursue their own agenda weakens all of us. Employees are best able to represent their interests when they act together. Every single person benefits from this strength. We speak with one voice — and the company benefits from it as well: through a culture in which we stand together, and for one another, in solidarity.
Promised? Delivered!
- No redundancies for operational reasons
- Ensuring that no one is left behind during restructuring processes
- Employment of all apprentices with a recommendation for retention
- Positive salary development under collective agreements and in the non-tariff (AT) area
- Robust arrangements for mobile working
- Strong collective bargaining outcomes
- Overcoming the divide between Business and Enabling Functions in the AT area
- Inflation compensation bonus for tariff and AT employees
- Bike leasing
- Job ticket
- Working from abroad (TWA)
- Personal advice and support for workplace-related challenges
Play it safe! Fair pay for good work
Pay at Boehringer Ingelheim is strong. This is due to years of growth, but also to many years of effective employee representation and trade-union engagement — resulting in strong collective bargaining outcomes and robust works agreements.
As IGBCE, we repeatedly and successfully fight for strong collective agreements. Within the Works Council, we are committed to translating collective agreements into sound operational practice and, where appropriate, extending them to the AT area. We do this together, with determination and a clear stance.
At the same time, there are still areas where adjustments are needed. This is where we advocate concrete improvements.
This includes job profiles that in some cases do not reflect actual tasks performed. This can lead to unfair job evaluations. We are committed to transparent and comprehensible job evaluation processes. Everyone must have access to their current job profile.
Additional tasks and overtime must be compensated fairly. Our position is clear: anyone who takes on additional responsibilities – for example by temporarily filling a staffing gap – must receive appropriate additional compensation. Existing collective agreement options must be fully utilised and company arrangements further developed. In the non-tariff area, binding rules are long overdue to ensure that additional work is also recognised through additional appreciation.
Employees working outside collective agreements must receive competitive non-tariff remuneration. The further development of the orientation framework and a fair distribution of the CP budget are key priorities. The NT area must continue to benefit from strong collective bargaining outcomes so that “non-tariff” genuinely remains “above tariff”.
Our core principle is: equal work, equal pay. Regardless of gender, part-time status, parental leave or qualification. Pay must be determined solely by the work performed. We support regular pay equity reviews and call for targeted measures to consistently and structurally eliminate disadvantages.
Play it safe! Apprenticeships create a future
An apprenticeship at Boehringer Ingelheim offers an excellent start to working life. It opens up real long-term prospects and provides personal security.
Training programs must also reflect the changing world of work. As IGBCE, we are committed to the highest quality of training at Boehringer Ingelheim – practical, modern and with clear prospects for entry into professional life.
During their training, all apprentices should have opportunities to develop personally and professionally beyond their formal occupational profile. This includes access to internal training programmes, external courses and digital learning opportunities.
Too often, apprentices are still viewed as low-cost labour. We believe that training must truly mean learning. This requires sufficient numbers of well-qualified colleagues who enjoy training others. Apprentices need real time to learn alongside practical work, and trainers on site who are approachable and have time for questions and feedback. Being challenged prepares people for the future; constant overload, however, puts it at risk.
“Am I doing enough? Will I be taken on?” The pressure is high and uncertainty is part of everyday life. That is why we advocate strong prospects for apprentices – for permanent employment at Boehringer Ingelheim and for long-term, high-quality workplaces. We engage in dialogue and negotiations to achieve the best possible outcomes: a solid entry into working life and clear development opportunities.
Play it safe! Mobile working
Many colleagues work from home some of the time. With the Group Works Agreement on “Mobile Working”, we have established a solid framework. This strong hybrid working arrangement is a key success factor for both employees and the company.
Announcements suggesting that mandatory on-site presence requirements may be considered create uncertainty and, in our view, send a backward-looking signal. Rigid presence requirements do not align with today’s world of work. Studies show that blanket attendance mandates risk lower productivity, increased exhaustion and the loss of highly qualified professionals.
Hybrid working models strengthen employee autonomy, increase motivation and enhance satisfaction. The future belongs to those who do not impose presence requirements out of fear of losing control, but instead recognise hybrid working as a strategic advantage.
Play it safe! Work and family
Balancing professional and personal responsibilities is challenging – especially for people with children or relatives in need of care. Security comes from knowing that work and private responsibilities can be reconciled without fear of disadvantage or overload.
Together with the employer, we have helped to ensure that Boehringer Ingelheim is well positioned by establishing reliable and predictable rules. Flexible working time models, childcare and supportive services provide stability in everyday life and security across different life phases. We remain committed to actively shaping these topics, expanding support measures and enabling working models that take individual circumstances into account and are underpinned by a culture of understanding.
This is how we safeguard long-term health, motivation and performance.
Play it safe! Skills development provides security and perspective
Continuous and needs-based qualification of all employees is the best protection for employment and provides security in everyday working life.
Digitalization, technological change and new forms of work increase demands and create uncertainty for many regarding future tasks and employment prospects. Targeted training and qualification measures secure competitiveness in a rapidly changing working environment while strengthening individual confidence to act. Up-to-date knowledge and relevant skills enable employees to actively shape change and reduce the risk of overload, job loss and career disruption. That is why we advocate low-threshold access to training and development opportunities for all employees – regardless of working model, qualification level or life situation.
Play it safe! Digitalization and AI that serves people
Digitalization has rapidly transformed the world of work in recent years. Technological developments bring both opportunities and risks for employees.
As a Works Council, we accompany and shape this transformation with a clear stance and clear objectives. In an innovative pharmaceutical company, the responsible use of artificial intelligence is a key determinant of future viability. AI offers enormous opportunities: it can accelerate research and development, improve processes and reduce strain in daily work.
We ensure that transformation does not come at the expense of employees. We advocate transparent, fair and human-centred use of AI – as a tool to support people, not to replace them. Our goal is to safeguard jobs, promote qualification and create new career perspectives. Only by shaping technological change together can we create a working environment that enables innovation while protecting employees’ interests.
Together, we are shaping a future in which technology serves people – not the other way around.
Play it safe! From shift workers – for shift workers
Shift work is demanding and places significant strain on those who work in shifts. This makes it all the more important to have strong arrangements in place to minimise burdens. That is why it is essential for shift workers to be represented on the Works Council. Only then can their experiences and needs directly inform discussions and decisions.
With the many candidates from production and shift operations on our list, we are committed to improving shift systems – with practical solutions instead of theoretical debates.
In shift operations, the core issue is often shift work itself. Shift work has a major impact on private life. We recognise this, and it drives our commitment to fight for improvements in our shift systems. We aim to introduce more modern and healthier shift models while increasing planning reliability for everyone.
Strong representation of your interests
Modern and healthier shift systems
High-quality, fresh and varied catering
Greater understanding of working hours, workloads and processes
Improved work-life compatibility