Status: 08/21/2021 9:14 am
The GDL has called on its members to paralyze freight traffic from the afternoon onwards. From Monday morning, the renewed strike will also hit passenger traffic. There is clear criticism of the union’s industrial action from business.
It is the second wave of strikes in the current collective bargaining between the Union of German Locomotive Drivers (GDL) and Deutsche Bahn: Freight traffic starts at 5 p.m., and passenger traffic is also affected from Monday morning. The GDL has called on its members to stop trains until Wednesday night.
In the cargo sector, the strike is affecting some sectors sensitively: The chemical and steel industries, for example, but also the automotive sector, are particularly dependent on rail freight. Business associations are therefore criticizing the industrial action in freight transport: “The German economy is only just trying to gain a foothold after the corona pandemic,” said the Federal Association of Employers’ Associations (BDA). She called on the GDL to return to the negotiating table. An interruption in the supply chain would jeopardize the economic recovery after the corona crisis.
New strikes in freight and passenger transport – from Monday travelers will need patience
Andreas König, RBB, Tagesschau 8:00 p.m., 8/20/2021
Many freight trains are rolling despite the strike
However, Deutsche Bahn is not the only provider in the cargo sector: In 2020 it transported around 43 percent of all goods by rail, the rest of the business was taken over by competitors – and they are not affected by the strike. In the first strike of this collective bargaining round last week, their trains even came through a little faster, as the network of European railways reported. The association only sees the risk of supply chains breaking in the event of a prolonged wave of strikes.
The competition of the trade unions
The GDL is concerned, among other things, with more money and better working conditions for employees. She is calling for wage increases of around 3.2 percent and a corona bonus of 600 euros in the current year. Unlike the larger railway and transport union (EVG), it does not want to accept a zero round in salaries this year. The Deutsche Bahn is offering the GDL 3.2 percent, but the increase is expected to take effect a little later than requested by the union. The conflict is deadlocked. A spokesman for the Ministry of Transport said, “The question of arbitration is more important than ever.” So far, however, the GDL has refused to arbitrate.