Christmas peace is a thing of the past
GDL announces rail strikes from Wednesday morning
January 7, 2024, 7:08 p.m
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In the collective bargaining dispute, the train drivers’ union is letting its actions speak for itself. The GDL said Deutsche Bahn did not use the Christmas truce to counter industrial action with a negotiable offer. Train riders have to reschedule from Wednesday to Friday.
The locomotive drivers’ union (GDL) does not want to begin its announced strikes in passenger transport on Monday, but rather on Wednesday night. The strike should then last until Friday evening. “The GDL members at Deutsche Bahn AG, Transdev and City Bahn Chemnitz are being asked to stop work from January 10th at 2 a.m. to January 12th at 6 p.m.,” said the GDL. The work stoppage at DB Cargo, however, begins on January 9th at 6 p.m.
It was said that the railway company did not use the Christmas truce to counter industrial action with a negotiable offer. The railway presented a new offer on Friday and declared that it wanted to prevent strikes. In the ongoing collective bargaining dispute, the GDL had already gotten the green light from its members for indefinite strikes before Christmas.
GDL boss Claus Weselsky had announced that travelers would have to expect longer labor disputes from January 8th. However, the German Civil Service Association recently declared that there would probably not be a strike on Monday and Tuesday in view of an important meeting of the association, of which the GDL is also a member.
The GDL’s core demand is a reduction in working hours for shift workers from 38 to 35 hours per week without loss of wages. The GDL has already reached such an agreement with two smaller railway companies, Netinera and Go Ahead. According to Weselsky, she wants to implement these results as a model throughout the entire industry. “We are committed to achieving comparable deals in the market,” he said a few weeks ago. “We won’t let up.” Last Friday, the railway proposed expanding existing choice models for working hours.
Up to now, employees can decide whether they want more money, more vacation or fewer working days per week. You could reduce your weekly hours from 39 to 37, but you would receive 5.7 percent less pay. The railway now offers the possibility of reducing weekly working hours in this mode by up to 35 hours. If you want, you could also work up to 40 hours a week for a little more money. The group continues to reject the full wage compensation demanded by the GDL.