The regulations, which have been agreed by KBA, employee representatives and representatives from the union IG Metall, came into effect from 1 January at the main plants in Würzburg and Radebeul.

A statement about the regulations said they were introduced "to alleviate fluctuations in capacity utilisation" and "serve to improve the profitability of the core sheetfed and web press business".

The amendments to the wage agreements, which will be in place until the end of 2014, include the removal of hours from flexitime accounts without adjusting wages; and a reduction in the weekly regular working times with corresponding adjustments to wages and salary.

"The actual weekly amount of hours worked can vary considerably depending on the volume of orders and operational capacity," the statement said. "The management board and non-tariff professional and managerial staff will also be subject to the savings to the same degree," it added.

In return, workers covered by the agreement will be protected from dismissal until 30 June 2015.

KBA marketing director Klaus Schmidt told PrintWeek that the removal of hours from flexitime accounts without adjusting wages would mean that employees would lose flexitime hours they had accrued without being compensated "to a certain extent". But he added that KBA would not publish more details on this.

He said this rule would apply to hours accrued from 7 January 2013 and that flexitime hours going forward would be collected on a personal account.

Asked whether there would be a minimum number of working hours a week for employees, Schmidt said this would be 32.5 hours a week at the web press facilities in Wuerzburg and Trennfeld, where the norm was 35 hours; and 30 hours a week at the sheetfed facility in Radebeul, where the norm was 38 hours.

Schmidt said he could not publish any more details on the agreement without the permission of the working council and the union.