tariff conflict
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Another train warning strike on Friday stops local and long-distance traffic
Travelers and commuters across the country have to prepare for train cancellations and delays again on Friday: the EVG union has announced another warning strike. It’s not just the train that’s affected.
- On Friday there should be a nationwide warning strike because of the wage conflict between the railways and the EVG
- In local and regional traffic, the trains should be canceled from 3 a.m. to 11 a.m., in long-distance traffic until 1 p.m
- The BVG is not affected, but ODEG, NEB and Transdev, among others, are
In the collective bargaining dispute at the railways, the railway and transport union (EVG) wants to stop rail traffic nationwide for the second time. On Friday from 3 a.m. to 11 a.m., travelers would have to be prepared for train cancellations and delays, the EVG said on Wednesday. This applies to regional and local transport, such as Berlin Train.
Im DB long-distance traffic According to the Bahn, there are no trains until 1 p.m. After that, it should be gradually ramped up again. The BVG runs as usual on Friday, it is not affected by the strike.
A spokesman for Deutsche Bahn said the strike in the morning is expected to have an impact throughout Friday. travelers should reschedule if possible [bahn.de]. All passengers who want to postpone their trip planned for Friday because of the strike can now use their long-distance ticket booked up to and including April 18 flexibly up to and including April 25, the railway said. Seat reservations can be canceled free of charge.
ODEG suspends traffic on all 15 lines
The warning strike in rail transport on Friday also affects the Ostdeutsche Eisenbahngesellschaft (ODEG). On Thursday, Odeg announced on its website that train services would be discontinued on all 15 lines. Although the ODEG is not directly struck, it is affected because it uses the infrastructure of DB Netz AG.
According to the ODEG, there may already be restrictions on operations from midnight, which could last until the end of the day. The use of replacement bus services is currently being examined. The scheduled ones Substitute traffic, such as on line RE1, would operate.
The trains of the companies could also be affected Niederbarnim Railway (NEB) and Hanseatic Railway (HANS) in Berlin and Brandenburg, if DB infrastructure employees also go on strike – for example on track or signal systems [vbb.de]. These private transport companies also use the railway infrastructure.
On Thursday, the EVG also called the employees of the railway company Transdev on the warning strike. The Transdev Group includes the Nordwestbahn, the Bayerische Oberlandbahn and the Mitteldeutsche Regiobahn. Despite the threat of a strike, only a slightly changed offer was presented during the collective bargaining on Wednesday, the union justified the call on Thursday. Therefore, the Transdev group will also be on strike from 3 a.m. to 11 a.m.
Also strikes at Düsseldorf, Hamburg and Cologne/Bonn airports
According to information from Wednesday, the EVG called on all of its members at Deutsche Bahn and in the other 50 or so bus and train companies to go on warning strikes, where negotiations are currently taking place. “We have to increase the pressure on employers who believe they can ignore the demands of their employees and instead want to conduct collective bargaining in the manner of landlords,” explained the two EVG collective bargaining boards Cosima Ingenschay and Kristian Loroch. That is not acceptable.
The opponents in the wage conflict of the railways mutually blame each other for the fact that there is still no agreement. Deutsche Bahn described the warning strike announced on Wednesday as “purely a campaign to recruit members” by the unions and criticized it as an incomprehensible escalation. “The EVG has completely lost measure and center and only relies on riots,” DB HR Director Martin Seiler was quoted as saying on Wednesday morning. The EVG had previously been “ready for zero minutes” to negotiate seriously with DB. The fact that nothing has progressed in the past three weeks was – depending on who you ask – on the opponent.
EVG sees responsibility in employers
The EVG union said it was “sending a clear signal that we don’t want to hit the passengers, but the companies, by calling for a time-limited warning strike in the early hours of the morning.” The responsibility lies with the employers, who have so far refused to engage in constructive collective bargaining.
“If we wanted to massively impress the employer, we would call for a strike lasting several days,” said Loroch. That could still happen in the future, but it is the wrong signal at the moment.
Discussions with Bahn will continue on Tuesday
The union is negotiating for around 230,000 employees and is demanding twelve percent more wages, but at least 650 euros more per month. The state-owned company Deutsche Bahn had offered five percent more and one-off payments of up to 2,500 euros.
The EVG refused to reach a conclusion at the DB on the basis of the arbitration award for public service. “We are not part of the public service and we are not part of the arbitration process,” Loroch said on Wednesday. Rather, one negotiates for the workforce of the bus and train and therefore expects “that Deutsche Bahn will not copy recommendations to other unions, but that our demands will be specifically addressed.” The DB Human Resources Director criticized the union for this on Wednesday. “Why shouldn’t what is good for the 2.5 million public sector workers also be good for 180,000 railway workers?” asked Seiler rhetorically. Discussions with the railway will continue on Tuesday.
Broadcast: rbb24 Inforadio, April 20, 2023, 9 a.m