Friday 29 October 2021
GDL membership numbers unclear
EVG puts train drivers’ union under pressure
A test of strength between the two rail unions brought Germany strikes during vacation time. Now the collective agreements are closed, but the dispute continues. The large EVG requires the small GDL to disclose its membership numbers. But the train drivers keep a low profile.
The ink under the collective agreements between Deutsche Bahn and the two divided rail unions is hardly dry, as the dispute between EVG and GDL goes into the next round: The railway workers’ union EVG demands the immediate counting of the union members in the individual railway companies. “The collective bargaining conflict is over – in order to bring about peace, it must be determined as quickly as possible which union has the majority in the company,” said EVG managing director Cosima Ingenschay to the editorial network Germany (RND). She pointed out that according to the law, the time of the last collective agreement applies to determine the majority in the companies. “So when a new collective agreement is signed, it will be counted,” demanded Ingenschay.
The collective agreement with the EVG was signed on October 7th. The GDL, on the other hand, has agreed with Deutsche Bahn that January 1, 2022 will be the deadline for the counting of members. The railway had invited to a clarification meeting on Friday in order to find an amicable solution. It was still unclear whether the conversation would take place until late in the evening. “The railway is still ready to do so,” said a DB spokeswoman.
Majority ratios are unclear in 72 companies
After the collective bargaining agreement of October 7, the EVG had written a letter to the railway company and the employers’ association Move, in which it demanded that the companies “immediately count”. Despite the deadline, the letter remained unanswered.
The EVG is the majority union in most of the 300 railway companies. Of 72 companies in which both unions compete, the GDL has the majority in probably 16 companies. In order to determine this exactly, the members in the company would have to be counted.
The background to the conflict is the worsening competitive situation between the two unions due to the Unified Collective Bargaining Act. The law stipulates that in a company with several unions only the collective agreement of the larger employee representation applies. In the respective collective bargaining negotiations, the railway had therefore agreed on a notarial procedure with both unions in order to determine the majority situation. The GDL had always rejected such an approach up to the collective bargaining in the summer.