ICE in Stuttgart train station Image: AFP
Shortly before the start of the arbitration procedure in the collective bargaining dispute with Deutsche Bahn, the railway and transport union EVG underlined its readiness to go on strike if the talks failed. ‘We can hold out a strike for a very long time,’ said EVG chairman Burkert.
Shortly before the start of the arbitration procedure in the collective bargaining dispute with Deutsche Bahn, the railway and transport union EVG underlined its readiness to go on strike if the talks failed. “We can hold out a strike for a very long time,” said EVG chairman Martin Burkert of the “Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung” (Monday edition). With regard to the difficult wage disputes, he said: “In the end we will be successful, I am very sure of that. We are very serious.”
The arbitration process begins Monday and may last until July 31. During this time, the peace obligation applies, so strikes are excluded. The railway had named ex-Federal Minister of the Interior Thomas de Maizière (CDU) as the mediator. The union opted for the employment lawyer and former Hessian Minister of Labor Heide Pfarr (SPD).
On June 21, the EVG declared collective bargaining to have failed and announced a strike ballot on indefinite strikes. A good week later, the union then agreed to the arbitration. After the arbitration, the employees should decide whether they want to accept the recommendations. According to the EVG, the ballot will take a few weeks, so a strike could begin at the end of August at the earliest.
HOME PAGE