Vereinte Dienstleistungs gewerkschaft

What Vereinte Dienstleistungs gewerkschaft does

ver.di (Vereinte Dienstleistungsgewerkschaft) is a German trade union founded in 2001 through the merger of five predecessor service-sector unions. It represents approximately 2 million members drawn from roughly 1,000 different professions, organized horizontally across all sectors and industries, with no individual industry dominating the membership base. The organization is headquartered in Berlin (Paula-Thiede-Ufer 10, 10179 Berlin) and operates a multi-tier federal structure: 60 district offices (Bezirke), 10 state associations (Landesbezirke), 5 specialized departments (Fachbereiche), and 9 dedicated education/training centers across Germany. Governance is democratic through elected bodies including the Federal Congress (Bundeskongress), the Trade Union Council (Gewerkschaftsrat), and the Federal Executive Board (Bundesvorstand) chaired by Frank Werneke, with Andrea Kocsis as deputy chairwoman.

The organization's core product is collective labor representation: collective bargaining (Tarifverhandlungen), strike coordination, works council (Betriebsrat) support, and legal representation in labor and social-law disputes. Member services delivered as part of membership include free legal protection (Ver.di Rechtsschutz), a free nationwide income-tax-filing service (ver.di-Lohnsteuerservice), a free rental-law hotline (ver.di-Mietrechtshotline), the Mitgliedervorteile discount program, and access to seminars through the ver.di-Bildungsportal. Sub-brands such as ver.di Jugend (youth division) and Deutsche Journalistinnen- und Journalisten-Union (dju) address specific constituencies. Digital infrastructure includes the closed meine.verdi member portal (meine.verdi.de) and the open verdi.de website, with member communications delivered through a multi-channel stack spanning YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, Telegram, WhatsApp, and a weekly newsletter. Technology stack is conventional enterprise tooling: Matomo for analytics, WebEx Telekom and Skype for Business for communications, LimeSurvey for surveys, and Artegic Elaine for newsletters; no proprietary AI/ML capability is documented.

The revenue model is subscription-recurring membership dues (Gewerkschaftsbeitrag); pricing is not publicly disclosed and the union emphasizes value-of-membership rather than tiered pricing. Members join via a self-serve online portal (mitgliedwerden.verdi.de), in-person visits to one of 60 district offices, or workplace organizing through Betriebsgruppen. Distribution is single-country domestic (Germany only), with no geographic expansion disclosed.

Name

Vereinte Dienstleistungs gewerkschaft

Legal name

Vereinte Dienstleistungsgewerkschaft

Website

https://verdi.de

Company type

Private

Founded year

2001

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Trade Union Services

NAICS

Labor Unions and Similar Labor Organizations (81393), All Other Legal Services (541199)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600), Services-Legal Services (8111)

akta.pro primary industry

Employment & Labor Law (BPAHAAAD)

akta.pro secondary industry

Workforce Compliance & Employment Law Risk Management (Local Labor Law, Tax, Statutory) (BPACAHAH)

Keywords

• Trade union services
• Collective bargaining
• Labor representation
• Worker advocacy
• Employment law

Headquarters

HQ city

Berlin

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices10 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Others

Revenue model

1. Membership Dues: ver.di is funded primarily through membership dues (Gewerkschaftsbeitrag). Members pay regular contributions to fund union activities including collective bargaining, legal representation, strike support, and political advocacy. As of 2026, union dues can no longer be deducted as werkzaamheden (work expenses) for tax purposes.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels11 records

Core offering

ver.di is a German service-sector trade union that recruits individual workers as members and provides them with collective bargaining representation, free legal protection in employment and social law, tax and rental law advisory services, member discounts, educational seminars, and political advocacy. It serves approximately 2 million members from around 1,000 different professions through 60 districts, 10 state associations, and 5 specialized industry departments.

Product overview

ver.di operates as a unified trade union organization offering its approximately 1.8 million members a comprehensive portfolio of services organized around its core mission of worker representation and labor rights advocacy. The primary customer-facing digital products include the "meine ver.di" closed member network and the "ver.di-Bildungsportal" learning management system. Member benefits are delivered through bundled services including free legal protection (Rechtsschutz), tax consultation (Lohnsteuerservice), rental law hotline (Mietrechtshotline), and the Mitgliedervorteile discount program. Specialized sub-brands such as ver.di Jugend (youth division) and Deutsche Journalistinnen- und Journalisten-Union (dju) serve specific professional constituencies. Communication with members is facilitated through ver.di Publikationen (magazines/newsletters), WhatsApp news channel, and a network of 60 local districts and 10 regional offices. The organization does not offer a technology product in the traditional SaaS sense; rather, it provides union services, collective bargaining representation, and member benefits.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• meine ver.di

Named customers5 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Deutsche Journalistinnen- und Journalisten-Union (dju) in ver.dicoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe dju is a professional union within ver.di specifically representing journalists and media professionals. It operates as an integral part of ver.di with its own press card services and member communications. The dju maintains its own press relations and media presence while benefiting from ver.di's broader resources and representation.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Regional players

• Trades Union Congress (TUC): UK national trade union confederation analogous to the DGB. Comparable as a national-level umbrella representing workers across industries with collective bargaining and political advocacy, though operating in a different geography.
• AFL-CIO: Largest US labor federation, comparable in scale and function to the DGB as a multi-union umbrella with political advocacy and collective bargaining coordination, though operating in the US regulatory environment.

Direct peers

• IG Metall: Germany's largest industrial trade union and fellow DGB affiliate, representing metalworking, automotive, and engineering workers. Directly comparable as a large German sectoral union with collective bargaining, legal services, and member benefits, competing for adjacent worker segments in the broader labor market.
• Eisenbahn- und Verkehrsgewerkschaft (EVG): German transport and railway workers' union. Comparable dues-funded German union with collective bargaining across a sector where ver.di also organizes workers (e.g., public transport under TV-N negotiations).
• IG BCE: Trade union for mining, chemicals, and energy workers, also under DGB. Comparable membership-funded model, collective bargaining focus, and member service portfolio serving a different but analogous German industrial segment.
• IG BAU: German trade union for construction, agriculture, and environmental workers. Comparable DGB-affiliated union with the same membership-dues model and member service structure serving a different but analogous worker segment.
• GdP (Gewerkschaft der Polizei): German police officers' trade union. Comparable membership-funded union structure with collective bargaining and member services, though representing a specific public-sector profession outside ver.di's direct remit.
• NGG (Gewerkschaft Nahrung-Genuss-Gaststätten): German trade union for food, beverages, and hospitality workers, also DGB-affiliated. Comparable small-to-mid scale union with sector-specific collective bargaining and a similar membership-dues business model.
• Gewerkschaft Erziehung und Wissenschaft (GEW): German education and science workers' union and DGB affiliate. Comparable as a sector-specific German union with dues-based funding, collective bargaining, legal protection, and a national district structure serving public-sector-adjacent employees.

Broad incumbents

• Deutscher Gewerkschaftsbund (DGB): Umbrella confederation of German trade unions under which ver.di sits. Comparable as the broader trade union federation that coordinates across multiple sectoral unions, providing political advocacy, training infrastructure, and joint bargaining coordination.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights5 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/_verdi
• YouTubeyoutube.com/@verdigewerkschaft
• Facebookfacebook.com/verdi
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/ver.di
• Instagraminstagram.com/wirsindverdi
• TikToktiktok.com/@wirsindverdi

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Vereinte Dienstleistungs gewerkschaft