Deutsche Bahn: Union threatens further strikes

While the strike at the railway is still in full swing, the head of the train drivers’ union GDL, Weselsky, is already threatening new strikes. You need staying power, he told trade unionists.

After the strike of the train drivers caused considerable problems in local and long-distance traffic, the railway expects numerous train cancellations on Thursday. Even before the strike announced for Friday night, Claus Weselsky, head of the German Locomotive Drivers Union (GDL), threatened with further stoppages.

You will not get away with the first measure, said Weselsky in front of trade unionists. “So we need staying power.” In particular, the long term of 40 months proposed by Deutsche Bahn had to be taken off the table. Weselsky said to his followers: “I do not promise you that it will be over on Friday. But we are careful with our collective bargaining power.” A decision on further industrial action is to be made in the coming week.

Strong restrictions also on Thursday

The current stoppage of work by the train drivers had already largely paralyzed the passenger transport of Deutsche Bahn today. According to the railway, the situation for commuters and tourists will not ease on Thursday either. According to the replacement schedule, three quarters of the long-distance trains will again not run, while various disruptions are expected to occur in the regional networks. According to its own statements, the railway is doing everything in its power to resume regular operations on Friday.

Because of the strike, however, the railway announced “special goodwill regulations”. Tickets that have already been booked for the affected routes will therefore remain valid until August 20, and there will be no specific train connection. A free reimbursement of train tickets is also possible.

In Corona times, the lack of space in the few remaining trains causes additional worries. “The trains are of course fuller than they are otherwise. That doesn’t exactly make things easier, because we try to offer as much distance as possible in pandemic times,” said a railway spokesman.

Strike puts supply chains at risk

According to Deutsche Bahn, the strike also endangers the supply chains of German and European industry. At the moment, around 190 freight trains are stuck in traffic, the company reported. With great effort and close cooperation with other rail companies, the freight transport subsidiary DB Cargo drives the supply-relevant trains to power plants or large industrial companies, for example.

Many travelers heard the GDL announcement on Tuesday and switched to other modes of transport. Because of the rush of passengers, Lufthansa uses larger types of aircraft on its domestic German flights up to and including Friday, as a spokeswoman reported. Long-distance bus provider Flixbus and rental car providers also recorded significantly increased demand. On the other hand, there were no unusually long traffic jams in rush hour traffic. In the majority of the federal states there are school holidays.

GDL calls for more salary and corona bonuses

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 wants to score points with the employees in the power struggle with the EVG.

With the two-day strike, the train drivers’ union GDL wants to bring the railway to an improved offer in the wage dispute. 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.

The railway wants to distribute the increase over later stages, with a contract term of 40 months. In addition, there would be pension benefits and the exclusion of redundancies for operational reasons.