Warning strike at Deutsche Bahn ends on Friday evening
Published: Friday, Dec 8th 2023, 23:01
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The strike at Deutsche Bahn ended on Friday evening. Traffic started up again after 10.00 pm. The GDL union had previously struck passenger transport for 24 hours and freight transport for 28 hours - with repercussions as far as Switzerland.
This resulted in thousands of train cancellations in Germany and a long backlog of freight traffic. "Long-distance and regional services will continue to operate according to the emergency timetable after 10 p.m.," announced the train drivers' union GDL.
The day after the warning strike, Deutsche Bahn intends to resume normal passenger services. This was announced online by the state-owned company on Friday evening.
A small number of trains may be canceled as a result of the GDL strike, especially in the morning rush hour, it was said. The GDL had previously staged an hour-long strike on passenger and freight services, bringing large parts of the service to a standstill.
In long-distance transport, the railroad put around 20 percent of the program on the rails according to an emergency timetable. The situation on regional services varied greatly. In some regions hardly any trains ran, in others there were individual lines. Replacement buses were also used during the 24-hour warning strike.
SBB had previously advised against traveling to Germany from Thursday to Friday evening. Tickets would remain valid. Affected trains would only run within Switzerland and would be canceled from or to the border, the SBB media office said at the request of Keystone-SDA. The canceled cross-border trains were replaced within Switzerland.
Union boss confident of victory
This was the second industrial action in the ongoing wage dispute between Deutsche Bahn and the GDL. The Transdev company was also on strike, as the wage dispute is currently not making any progress here either. Union leader Claus Weselsky expressed confidence on Friday that the warning strike would enable him to push through his demands to the railroad board.
The effects on freight traffic were also serious, with train drivers stopping work for 28 hours. Around 170 freight trains had already been jammed due to the winter chaos in Bavaria, as the railroad announced on Thursday. "It is to be feared that this number will double," said a spokesperson.
While Weselsky was confident of victory, many people in Germany were annoyed by the renewed warning strike, according to a survey by the Yougov Institute. Almost 60 percent of those surveyed said they had no sympathy for the GDL strike. In contrast, 30 percent expressed understanding for the industrial action.
Progress of negotiations open
If you count the industrial action by the larger rail and transport union (EVG) in the first half of the year, this is the fourth warning strike this year that has led to far-reaching restrictions for passengers. An agreement has already been reached with the EVG. The GDL, on the other hand, declared the wage negotiations with Deutsche Bahn to have failed around two weeks ago. It is unclear when and how talks will resume.
The main sticking point in the negotiations is the GDL's demand to reduce the working hours for shift workers from 38 to 35 hours. Deutsche Bahn rejects this in principle, pointing out that it would then need ten percent more staff in the relevant professions. The union is also demanding, among other things, an increase of 555 euros per month and an inflation adjustment bonus. Among other things, Deutsche Bahn has already held out the prospect of an eleven percent increase over a period of 32 months.
Passengers can now breathe a sigh of relief after the warning strike. GDL boss Weselsky has ruled out further industrial action up to and including January 7.
©Keystone/SDA
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