Status: 11.08.2021 6:55 a.m.
The strike of the locomotive drivers’ union GDL causes train cancellations and delays nationwide. The strike should end on Friday night. The railway called on the GDL to return to the negotiating table.
Rail travelers across Germany have to be prepared for train cancellations and delays: A strike by the train drivers’ union GDL has started and largely paralyzes the passenger transport of Deutsche Bahn. The replacement plan has started, said a railway spokesman. “The first effects of the strike are being felt,” he said.
Since 2 a.m., the GDL has also called for strikes in passenger traffic. Freight traffic has been on strike since yesterday evening.
Thousands of passengers have to improvise, substitute timetables apply. In long-distance traffic, around every fourth train should still run. There are also likely to be considerable failures in regional traffic and on the S-Bahn. The strike is due to end on Friday night.
Bahn announces “special goodwill regulations”
The railway asked passengers to postpone journeys that were not absolutely necessary. Because of the corona virus, she also called for consideration on the trains. In addition, the railway announced “special goodwill regulations” because of the strike. Tickets that have already been booked for the affected routes will therefore remain valid until August 20; the train connection is no longer applicable. A free reimbursement of train tickets is also possible.
The strike hits the passengers in the middle of the busy holiday season: In eleven of the 16 federal states there are school holidays. Cross-border connections are also affected.
Bahn personnel director Martin Seiler described the strike as “completely inappropriate and excessive”. Railway spokesman Achim Stauß called on the union to return to the negotiating table. “We were already relatively close to each other when it came to wage increases,” said Stauß. The dispute over the duration of a collective agreement can be resolved in negotiations.
GDL boss Claus Weselsky referred to the unresolved collective bargaining conflict. “With this first signal, the management must realize that eating cherries is not good with us.”
The passenger association Pro Bahn called for reliable information to be provided to rail customers. “Nothing is more annoying than waiting for a train during a strike that doesn’t go wrong.” The association called on the railway and the GDL to find a solution to their conflict in an arbitration.
Competitors of the railway are not on strike
The train drivers’ union is fighting for more money and better working conditions for its members at Deutsche Bahn. Unlike the larger railway and transport union (EVG), it does not want to accept a zero round in salaries this year. The GDL also wants to score points with the employees in the power struggle with the EVG.
Competitors of Deutsche Bahn are not on strike. They have considerable market shares in regional and freight transport. However, restrictions are also possible for them if dispatchers join the GDL strike.
It is the first strike at Deutsche Bahn since December 2018, when the EVG called on its members to take part in a labor dispute. The GDL last stopped working six years ago. Among other things, it calls for wage increases, such as in the public sector, of around 3.2 percent and a significant corona bonus in the current year. The term of the collective agreement should be 28 months. There is also a struggle for company pensions.
Due to billions in losses in the pandemic, the railway wants to distribute the increase to later stages, with a contract term of 40 months. In addition, there are pension benefits and the exclusion of redundancies for operational reasons.