As of: January 23, 2024, 10:05 a.m
By: Peter Sieben
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Another rail strike in Germany: the GDL will paralyze rail traffic for six days.
Passenger associations and politicians find this disproportionate.
Berlin – The S word is gradually teaching rail customers fear: “S” for strike.
Yet again.
Commuters have only just survived the snow chaos and train cancellations when the train drivers' union GDL announces a six-day train strike.
From Wednesday until next Monday there are likely to be numerous cancellations in long-distance, regional and S-Bahn transport.
There has already been criticism from Transport Minister Volker Wissing (FDP).
Now the SPD's transport policy spokeswoman, Isabel Cademartori, is also railing against GDL boss Claus Weselsky's new strike plans.
Rail strike: GDL should not “lose sight of the balance”
“The form of collective bargaining practiced by the GDL exceeds what is reasonable,” Cademartori told
IPPEN.MEDIA
.
“Collective negotiations cannot be conducted exclusively through the media.
They must take place in intensive, confidential discussions.” But this requires the willingness of everyone involved to sit down at the table and constructively look for solutions, said the SPD politician.
It is the “good and constitutionally protected right of the GDL to strike rail traffic,” said Cademartori.
However, there are doubts about the proportionality: “But it is also your obligation not to lose sight of the balance.
A six-day strike, without prior direct negotiations about Deutsche Bahn's new offer, raises many questions and affects millions of commuters disproportionately hard." The acceptance of the rail system also depends on the trust of customers that collective bargaining is not possible regularly lead to unpredictable standstills on the rails, according to the transport policy spokeswoman.
The CDU/CSU also currently has little understanding of the union.
“Despite all the restraint that politicians should rightly show in such collective bargaining strikes, I still consider the renewed strike announcement to be wrong and unjustified,” said Michael Donth, transport expert for the Union, to
IPPEN.MEDIA.
“I'm wondering why the GDL - after Deutsche Bahn has once again submitted a new and better offer - is not willing to negotiate.
It seems as if the GDL is only interested in escalation.” He doubts that the union will ultimately achieve a good collective bargaining agreement for the train drivers with this strategy.
From his point of view, Deutsche Bahn is already willing to compromise.
“She has submitted several offers and the door for negotiations is always open to the GDL.
If DB AG simply fulfills all of GDL’s demands, it will open itself up to blackmail,” says Donth.
“The union’s core demand does not concern more wages, but rather a significant reduction in working hours.
The DB's great personnel shortage would increase many times over if it accepted that train drivers would only work 35 hours on full salary. He can understand that the railway does not simply accept that.
Pro Bahn Passenger Association: Six days of rail strike is “unreasonable”
Meanwhile, there was also criticism from the Pro Bahn passenger association.
“The duration of the strike of six days is of course an unreasonable burden for the passengers.
In our opinion, less would be sufficient,” said Detlef Neuß, federal chairman of Pro Bahn, to
IPPEN.MEDIA
.
GDL wants 35-hour week for members with rail strike
In addition to wage increases, the GDL union wants a 35-hour week for its members.
Detlef Neuß from Pro Bahn would like both sides – the railway and the union – to be more willing to compromise for the benefit of millions of passengers.
“Considering that there are already agreements with other railway companies for a 35-hour week with the GDL, Deutsche Bahn's offer of an hour's reduction in working hours is not really sufficient.
But it could be used as a basis for a new round of negotiations in the interests of the passengers.”
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Pro Bahn has been demanding for years a binding strike timetable agreed between the railway companies and the unions, which ensures a minimum offer in the event of a strike.
“This happens in strike-happy countries like Italy and France, so why not here?” asks Neuß rhetorically.
For its part, the railway had announced that it would offer an emergency timetable with a greatly reduced range of journeys for long-distance, regional and S-Bahn transport, “as was the case during the last strike”.