Collective bargaining – GDL announces strikes from Thursday – Bahn speaks of a threat to the railway system
Picture Alliance/Andreas Franke
Video: rbb24 Abendschau | 03/04/2024 | P. Höppner | Image: Picture Alliance/Andreas Franke
The train drivers’ union GDL and the railway have not reached an agreement in the collective bargaining dispute. That’s why the GDL is calling for “wave strikes”. Passenger traffic will be affected from Thursday. The following strikes should no longer be announced in advance.
- From Thursday 2 a.m. there will be a strike on rail passenger traffic
- The GDL no longer wants to announce any further strikes in advance
- The point of contention in collective bargaining is the 35-hour week
- Pro Bahn passenger association calls for “Easter peace”
- S-Bahn publishes emergency timetable
The German Train Drivers’ Union (GDL) has announced further strikes at Deutsche Bahn – from Wednesday evening at 6 p.m. in freight transport and Thursday at 2 a.m. in passenger transport. GDL boss Claus Weselsky said this on Monday in Berlin. The strike should therefore last for 35 hours, i.e. until Friday, 5 a.m. for freight transport and 1 p.m. for passenger transport.
After that, there will be further strikes without announcements as so-called “wave strikes”. “The train is currently not a reliable means of transport,” Weselsky told journalists.
Railway: Demands “massively endanger the railway system”
Deutsche Bahn accuses the train drivers’ union of endangering the German railway system with its behavior in the collective bargaining dispute and the recent strike announcement. The union is “stubbornly and selfishly” insisting on its maximum demands, explained DB human resources director Martin Seiler on Monday. However, the demands “cannot be met and pose a massive threat to the railway system”. “Seile called on the GDL to “come back to the negotiating table and find solutions that are in everyone’s interest.”
Big point of contention: the 35-hour week
The GDL and the railway actually wanted to negotiate until Sunday. According to the company, the union broke off the talks prematurely.
The issue of the 35-hour week remains a point of contention. “Despite extensive concessions,” the GDL left the negotiating table, a DB spokesman explained at the time. Until recently, the trade unionists had “dogmatically insisted on a 35-hour week with full wage compensation”. The moderators Thomas de Maizière and Daniel Günther (both CDU) “also made compromise suggestions regarding weekly working hours”.
Pro Bahn passenger association calls for “Easter peace”
The Pro Bahn passenger association made serious accusations against GDL and DB. “The way things are going at the moment is no longer acceptable,” said press spokesman Thmas Schirmer on Monday in the rbb24 Abendschau. The “wave strikes” are inappropriate and passengers must be informed at least 24 hours in advance. In addition, Pro Bahn is calling for an “Easter peace”: a strike break should be taken from March 20th to April 10th, said Schirmer.
In view of the hardened fronts in the collective bargaining negotiations, Schirmer now sees politicians as having a duty. The Federal Transport Minister and the transport ministers of the federal states must “follow a common line”.
It’s not the only labor dispute making travel difficult this week. Shortly before the GDL also had Verdi called for warning strikes at Lufthansa. All ground staff should stop work on Thursday and Friday. The walkout is scheduled to begin at 4 a.m. on Thursday and end at 7:10 a.m. on Saturday.
S-Bahn publishes emergency timetable
In response to the GDL’s strike announcement, the Berlin S-Bahn, which was also affected by the announced strike, published an emergency timetable. This applies from 2 a.m. on Thursday morning until the announced end of the strike on Friday.
The S-Bahn S1, S2, S25, S3, S46 and the S5 should run every hour, the S9 every half hour. According to S-Bahn management, the S25 and S2 bus replacement services should run every 20 minutes. The S-Bahn plans to provide further information on its website in the coming days sbahn.berlin [Externer Link] publish
Broadcast: rbb24 Inforadio, March 5, 2024, 2:20 p.m