FFor rail customers, the next few weeks may be difficult: German Engine Drivers Union (GDL) is advancing your strike plan. Members’ voting on labor disputes will end this Monday. GDL boss Claus Weselsky hopes to announce the results on Tuesday. He expects to reach more than 90% of the agreement. It is not clear when the strike will occur. Deutsche Bahn once again called on the union to negotiate again. Federal Minister of Transport Andreas Scheuer (CSU) urged all tariff parties to proceed with caution.
“No one really needs this strike right now,” said Martin Seiler, the personnel director of the state-owned railway company. “In the final analysis, this is an attack on the entire country.” After the coronavirus restrictions, many people are only now starting to travel again. “Bild am Sonntag” stated, “In terms of content, the reason for the strike is zero. Shure “Welt am Sonntag” said, “Now we need unity.” The corona time hit the railway badly.
However, the collective bargaining between the railway and the trade union has reached a deadlock. The two sides accused each other of spreading lies and were not interested in negotiations.
This will be the railway’s first strike since December 2018, when the Railway and Transportation Union (EVG) called on its members to participate in labor disputes.Much harder GDL strike 2014 and 2015. The train drivers carried out eight additional strikes.
Bahn hopes to be guided by the airport’s “emergency collective agreement”
Among other things, GDL has called for wage increases, such as increases in public sector wages by around 3.2%, and provides substantial new crown bonuses this year.
However, due to the pandemic, the railway hopes to position itself as an “emergency collective bargaining agreement” at the airport, which will share a similar increase of 3.2% over a longer period and later, with a contract period of 40 months. In addition, it would be beneficial to provide pensions and eliminate redundancy due to operational reasons.
Last fall, the rival union EVG has signed a collective agreement with the railway. This year is a zero round. In early 2022, employees will receive 1.5% of additional funds. Does not include termination for operational reasons.
GDL-Chef Weselski A clear vote for the strike is expected. He told Le Monde that he started with the approval of “over 90%” of labor disputes. When asked about the possible duration of the train driver’s strike, Wesselski replied: “I don’t know how long there are any restrictions on how long the strike lasts.”
In the 2014 strike vote, 91% of the votes supported labor disputes. According to the trade union charter, “75% of the employees who have the right to vote in the strike vote” are required. However, there were also legal opinions at that time that the approval rate must be calculated based on the total number of railway members.
The union did not disclose how many of the 37,000 GDL members serve Deutsche Bahn. According to its own information, it represents 80% of train drivers and 40% of train attendants. It is also trying to build a larger base, including dispatchers, train stations and railway workshops. In doing so, it is comparable to EVG.
