Today, Monday, March 27th, Germany is mostly at a standstill. Both the railway union EVG and the service union Verdi have called for a nationwide warning strike, which paralyzes almost all airports and all long-distance rail traffic. Other sectors are also affected by the mega strike. There are failures in large parts of the regional train service as well as in many local public transport systems.
Hundreds of thousands of travelers are affected by the effects, some of which were already noticeable at the weekend and will continue to cause problems in the next few days. But what happens next? The next round of negotiations between employers’ associations and unions is scheduled for March 27-29. If the parties fail to reach an agreement, another wave of strikes could roll towards Germany. What does this mean for the Easter holidays and the upcoming holidays? Do travelers now have to worry about alternatives?
At least for the specific Easter weekend from April 7th to 10th, those responsible give the all-clear – partially. In all likelihood there will be no strikes. However, a trade union leaves a small loophole open. The EVG excludes activities on the coming public holidays. When asked by “Bild am Sonntag”, the union said: “Since we want to hit employers and not travelers with strikes, we will not be negotiating around the Easter holidays.” This could rule out strikes around the holidays for all travelers, the railway union said. The trains are running, but how is Verdi, who is responsible for the work stoppages at the airports, behaving?
The service union has so far been more reticent than the EVG, but has calmed down. When asked by the broadcaster RTL, a statement said: “There are currently no warning strikes in the public sector at federal and local level over Easter.” So you don’t want to completely rule out strikes on the public holidays yet, the little word “currently” makes sure of that. But even if the next round of negotiations should fail, this does not automatically mean a new wave of strikes. According to Verdi, an arbitration date would then probably be set before which there would be no strike. Such an arbitration date is probably only expected for the days after Easter.
A strike on the Easter holidays is therefore extremely unlikely, but not yet 100 percent impossible, at least on the part of Verdi. All train passengers can rest easy and trust that the trains will be rolling over Easter. The EVG is at least in word. The probability of a strike by Verdi at airports at Easter time can also currently be classified as negligible, but not yet completely off the table.
