ultimatum expired
Rail union maintains 50-hour warning strike
Bremen: Demonstrators from the railway and transport union (EVG) stand with posters in front of the main station.
© Sina Schuldt / DPA
The railway and transport union EVG is sticking to its planned 50-hour warning strike on the rails from Sunday evening. The union announced on Friday.
In the collective bargaining dispute at Deutsche Bahn, there are still signs of a nationwide warning strike in the coming week. An ultimatum from the railway union EVG for a new tariff offer from Deutsche Bahn expired on Friday afternoon at 12:00 p.m. without any recognizable approximation. The union had given the state-owned company time to adjust the offer in order to prevent a strike. Until recently, however, there was no sign of any rapprochement – it is therefore very likely that the train will be on strike for 50 hours from Sunday evening.
Deutsche Bahn announced on Friday afternoon that “we approached the EVG again and confirmed that the minimum wage would not fail”. The DB have met the requirements of the EVG 1 to 1, without tricks and without a cap. “What else should we do as an employer?” said DB HR Director Martin Seiler. The EVG called on the employees to stop work from Sunday evening 10 p.m. to Tuesday evening 12 p.m. During this time, Deutsche Bahn will completely stop long-distance traffic. Even at DB Regio, hardly a train will run in the event of a strike.
Bahn lets EVG ultimatum expire
On Thursday evening, both sides made short-term attempts to advance negotiations on new collective agreements. According to both sides, the railway failed in its attempt to avert the warning strike. EVG negotiator Kristian Loroch spoke on Friday night of “bogus offers” from the employer. The ultimatum followed until Friday noon.
Watch the video: “The last punctual train left in 1955” – Augstein and Blome are arguing about the mammoth strike by Deutsche Bahn.
The central sticking point is currently the minimum wage, which around 2,000 employees at DB only achieve through allowances. The EVG wants to include the statutory minimum wage of 12 euros in the tables first, so that all further negotiation results can then be calculated based on this value. The railway has partially promised. However, she only wants to clarify later in the negotiations whether all collective bargaining results actually come as increases in the tables or are paid via allowances. Overall, the EVG is negotiating for 180,000 employees at DB and a further 50,000 at other railway companies.