The German train drivers’ union GDL has called on Deutsche Bahn (DB) employees to go on strike again. This will begin in passenger transport on Wednesday morning at 2 a.m. and last until Monday next week at 6 p.m., the union announced on Monday night. Connections to and from Austria are also likely to be affected again.
Difficult days lie ahead for commuters with thousands of train cancellations expected. During previous strikes by the GDL, Deutsche Bahn only ran a fifth of the actual range on long-distance transport. Connections to and from Austria could also be affected again. The Austrian Federal Railways (ÖBB) recommend postponing unnecessary trips to Germany or choosing alternative travel options. Tickets purchased before January 22nd can be canceled and refunded. Tickets that have already been purchased can also be used up to and including February 5th.Westbahn runs as scheduledThe Westbahn, however, runs as scheduled to and from Rosenheim and Munich as well as via the Deutsche Eck to Tyrol and Vorarlberg. “Upon presentation of a valid DB/ÖBB ticket for long-distance trains, passengers can travel free of charge between Munich Central Station and Salzburg Central Station,” the broadcast said. The exceptions to this are the Deutschland and Bayern tickets. Here you can see the announcement from the Westbahn on This includes, among other things, an option for one hour less working time for train drivers and train attendants from January 1, 2026. However, this was apparently not enough for new negotiations. “With the third and supposedly improved offer, Deutsche Bahn AG has once again shown that it is undeterred in pursuing its previous course of refusal and confrontation – there is no trace of any desire to reach an agreement,” said the GDL statement. Deutsche Bahn defended itself on Monday the morning her offer to the GDL. “The DB relies on compromises, the GDL is exaggerating the conflict,” said a spokesman. Anyone who doesn’t even come to the negotiating table when a new offer is made is acting absolutely irresponsibly. Strikes again and again. The industrial action now announced would be the fourth in the ongoing collective bargaining dispute. Before the turn of the year, the GDL paralyzed large parts of German passenger traffic in two warning strikes, followed in January by a three-day strike with a similar effect. DB human resources director Martin Seiler criticized on Friday that the GDL does not use strikes as a last resort, but rather as a means of self-promotion. The offer from Deutsche Bahn presented on Friday includes 4.8 percent more money for employees from August and a further 5 percent more from April 2025. In addition, payment of the inflation compensation premium is planned immediately after a possible collective bargaining agreement. According to the DB offer, the term should be 32 months. Less working hours with the same salary. Deutsche Bahn is also offering train drivers and train attendants the opportunity to reduce their working hours from 38 to 37 hours with the same salary from January 1, 2026. According to the offer, anyone who decides against the reduction will instead receive 2.7 percent more money. In total, the employees who stick with their current working hours received 13 percent more gross money with the offer than they do now. The GDL is demanding 555 euros more per month as well as an inflation compensation bonus for a period of 12 months. However, according to public statements, what is much more important to the union is a reduction in working hours for shift workers from 38 to 35 hours per week with full wage compensation. Deutsche Bahn considers the demand to be unfulfillable on this scale, also because too many new staff would then be needed. There is already a shortage of skilled workers among train drivers and other railway professions. The collective bargaining conflict between Deutsche Bahn and the GDL has been ongoing since the beginning of November. The GDL declared the talks to have failed after the second round of negotiations. There have been no negotiations since November 24th. After a strike vote among the GDL members, indefinite strikes are also possible.
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