The railway and the train drivers’ union GDL want to continue negotiating from February 5th. The rail strike therefore ends early Monday morning. According to the railway, an agreement should be reached by the beginning of March.
The strike by train drivers in Deutsche Bahn passenger transport ends early on Monday at 2 a.m. The strike was originally announced until Monday evening at 6 p.m. and began last Wednesday. Freight trains should run again from 6 p.m. on Sunday.
According to the company, the railway and the train drivers’ union GDL want to resume their negotiations. This was agreed upon in confidential discussions. It was already known on Saturday morning that both sides were in talks again. “We are finally negotiating again. Our customers have planning security and our employees have the prospect of wage increases soon,” said DB Human Resources Director Martin Seiler, according to a press release. “All topics were discussed in a constructive atmosphere and formed into a roadmap for the final negotiations.”
Negotiations from February 5th
From February 5th, the tariffs will be negotiated behind closed doors. “The negotiations are being conducted by the collective bargaining parties themselves,” said the railway. If necessary, moderators could be brought in. The aim is to reach a collective agreement by the beginning of March. A peace obligation should apply until March 3rd, which rules out further strikes. The peace obligation could be extended.
The railway has already announced that it will pay its employees an inflation compensation bonus of 1,500 euros “in March”. “It was also agreed to negotiate working time models for all employees working in shifts,” said a railway spokeswoman.
Restrictions expected on Monday
In the past few days, the railway has offered around 20 percent of the usual long-distance service with an emergency timetable. The spokeswoman emphasized that this also applies on weekends. There are even greater restrictions.
There could still be restrictions on long-distance and regional transport next Monday. “We ask our passengers to check the DB’s digital information media on Monday in good time before starting their journey,” said the railway. Passengers who had originally planned trips for the period of the strike between January 24th and 29th could still use their train tickets.
The collective bargaining negotiations between Bahn and GDL began at the beginning of November. After the first round, GDL boss Claus Weselsky called for a warning strike. After the second round, he declared the talks had failed and initiated a strike vote. Since then, the signs have been pointing to escalation rather than negotiation.
Weekly working hours continue to be a difficult point
A sticking point in the negotiations so far is the union’s demand for a reduction in weekly working hours from 38 to 35 hours from 2028 with full wage compensation. The railway initially rejected this outright, but later offered an option model. This would allow train drivers to work down to 37 hours per week, but in return they would have to forego an additional salary increase offered. Overall, the company offers up to 13 percent more wages.