In Germany, the announced major strike in the transport sector began on Monday night. Around 350,000 employees in various areas across Germany have been called on a 24-hour warning strike since midnight. The service company Verdi and the railway and transport union (EVG) had called for a strike because of the wage dispute in the public sector and on the railways.
The most extensive strikes in many years are likely to paralyze large parts of traffic in Germany. Deutsche Bahn stopped all long-distance traffic for Monday and hardly any trains are expected to run in regional traffic either.
There are also strikes in numerous local transport networks, i.e. on the S-Bahn and buses, and at almost all airports with the exception of Berlin. The strike began on Sunday at Munich Airport; there was no regular passenger traffic. Ship traffic is on strike at locks and ports. The streets should be a lot busier than usual.
On Monday, Verdi will enter the third round of collective bargaining for around 2.5 million public sector workers. The union demands 10.5 percent and at least 500 euros more monthly salary. The EVG is in collective bargaining with Deutsche Bahn and around 50 other companies. For a period of one year, it calls for wage increases of a total of twelve percent, but at least 650 euros as a “social component”.
The big warning strike also brought operations at Stuttgart Central Station to a standstill. There were no trains to be seen at the platforms. The S-Bahn didn’t run either. There were very few people in the station building, bakeries were open, but customers came only sparsely.
The nationwide warning strike has paralyzed not only long-distance but also regional and S-Bahn traffic in North Rhine-Westphalia. “Nothing is running on the rails at the moment,” said a spokesman for the railway for NRW. This affects not only the regional connections of DB-Regio, but also the lines of the railway competitors.
The reason is that staff in operations centers and signal boxes are also taking part in the warning strike. This paralyzes traffic for all users of the railways. It remains to be seen whether there will be individual connections again in the afternoon, said the spokesman. Rail replacement traffic with buses is not possible simply because of the size and lack of staff, said the railway spokesman. Railway competitors such as National Express and the Rhein-Ruhr-Bahn have announced the establishment of emergency bus services.
Regional and S-Bahn traffic in Berlin and Brandenburg has been suspended due to the nationwide warning strike. “Since the start of operations, there have been no more regional trains in Berlin and Brandenburg,” said a spokeswoman for Deutsche Bahn.
Whether individual lines could be resumed in the afternoon would depend on the course of the strike, she said. “Then there is a shift change, and it depends on whether the colleagues resume operations,” said the spokeswoman.
The Ostdeutsche Eisenbahngesellschaft (ODEG) also reported that 14 lines would not operate until at least the afternoon because the Deutsche Bahn infrastructure would not be served due to the warning strike. In Brandenburg, local public transport with buses and trains is largely unaffected. The Berlin transport company with subways, buses and trams will not be on strike either.
All domestic German flights have been canceled at Leipzig/Halle and Dresden airports due to the nationwide warning strikes in the transport sector. According to the arrival and departure boards at both airports, all Lufthansa connections to and from Munich and Frankfurt were canceled. A Eurowings flight to and from Düsseldorf was also canceled in Dresden. The other flights of other companies should remain. The Verdi union has called on security staff at almost all major airports in Germany to go on all-day warning strikes.
Accompanied by the nationwide warning strikes in the transport sector, the third wage round for federal and local employees will start on Monday (10:00 a.m.) in Potsdam. The unions Verdi and the civil service association are demanding 10.5 percent more money for the 2.4 million employees, but at least 500 euros a month for a period of twelve months. The employers are offering a wage increase of five percent for a term of 27 months and a tax-free one-off payment of 2,500 euros to compensate for inflation.
According to expectations of the German Council of Economic Experts, the rate of inflation could fall by 0.3 percentage points to 6.6 percent this year and to 3.0 percent next year. The third round of collective bargaining is scheduled to last until Wednesday, and no agreement has yet been reached on whether to continue.
The railway union EVG has defended the big warning strike and warns of new failures in the Easter holidays. “We are striking for a viable offer,” said EVG chairman Martin Burkert of the newspaper “Augsburger Allgemeine” (Monday edition), according to the preliminary report. “What the railways have put on the table so far is nothing.” The railways even work with antisocial counterclaims, such as holiday cuts. The EVG boss therefore believes that further warning strikes are also possible during the Easter holiday period. But the union doesn’t want that. “It depends on whether the board of directors will come up with a decent offer soon.”
Burkert dismissed allegations by employers that the major strike in the middle of collective bargaining was “disproportionate”. “We deal responsibly with the right to strike,” said the trade unionist. He understands the train drivers who are frustrated with the canceled trains. However, employees in the transport sector are dependent on significant wage increases.
“We have gross wages of 2,100 to 2,400 euros for colleagues in the lower wage brackets, such as bus drivers and customer service representatives,” said Burkert. He therefore finds something completely different to be disproportionate: “The fact that the railway boss gets 30 to 40 times the annual salary of his employees. We demand a base amount of at least 650 euros more per month or 12 percent. There’s nothing disproportionate about that. People are really angry and ready to go on strike.”
Before the third round of collective bargaining in the public sector, the head of the civil servants’ association dbb, Ulrich Silberbach, warned of a further escalation of industrial action. “Either we cut the knot and find an agreement, or we face another wave of escalation and strikes,” said Silberbach of the German Press Agency in Berlin.
Silberbach again criticized the previous employer offer and called on the federal government and local authorities to bring movement into the deadlocked negotiations with a new offer.
Verdi boss Frank Werneke has defended the comprehensive warning strike in the transport sector in Germany at the start of another round of collective bargaining for the public sector. “With the strike day in the transport sector, employers should once again be made unmistakably clear that the employees clearly support our demands,” said Werneke of the German Press Agency in Potsdam. This applies in particular to the required minimum amount of 500 euros, which employers have so far rejected.
“Until now, the federal government and local authorities have categorically rejected a socially balanced collective bargaining agreement,” Werneke continued. Verdi cannot accept that. “That’s why we’re doing it now. It’s better to send a strong signal now than weeks of labor disputes with the associated consequences.”
Regarding allegations by the employers that the massive warning strikes were a burden on the negotiations, Werneke said: “Public sector employees, including those in the middle income groups, see the enormous price increases for electricity, gas and food as a particular burden.” The Verdi boss once again criticized this Offer presented by the employers in February. This definitely does not contribute to solving the conflict. “It has to be clear: we can’t avoid a minimum amount,” Werneke made clear.
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