After the strike-related disruptions in rail and air traffic, labor disputes in Bavaria also blocked the sea route this Monday. Strictly speaking, the one-day warning strike that the Verdi union called on the employees of the Bavarian Lakes Shipping actually only affected the crossing from Schönau over the Königssee to St. Bartholomä. The lake shipping electric boats travel there and back around a dozen times a day throughout the winter.
For day trippers to the famous pilgrimage church there is almost no alternative to the half-hour crossing. The Rinnkendlsteig high above the western shore of the lake is only for confident mountaineers and can hardly be completed in less than five and a half hours of pure walking time. The long loop through the mountains east and south around the lake usually requires at least one overnight stay.
The overland route around the other three lakes in the Upper Bavarian foothills of the Alps on which the state-owned ships travel would be easier, but the season hasn’t started here anyway. The excursion steamers on Lake Starnberg and Ammersee only operate from Easter Sunday, while on Lake Tegernsee the regular season begins the weekend before.
Verdi is demanding 9.86 percent more wages, but at least 465 euros more per month for the 160 employees in the maritime shipping industry. They transport around 1.5 million passengers every year with more than 30 ships. The company was privatized by the Free State in 1997, but it still owns 100 percent.