There is a renewed threat of strikes at Deutsche Bahn. According to the federally owned company, the collective bargaining negotiations between Deutsche Bahn and the train drivers’ union GDL, which were resumed a few weeks ago, have failed. The German train drivers’ union had broken off negotiations, the railway announced on Thursday. The “Bild” newspaper had previously reported. The GDL was initially not available for comment.
“Despite far-reaching concessions from Deutsche Bahn (DB) and despite the use of two experienced moderators, the German Locomotive Drivers’ Union (GDL) broke off the confidential collective bargaining negotiations with Deutsche Bahn early today,” the railway said. This time too, the talks failed because of the GDL’s core demand for a reduction in weekly working hours for shift workers from 38 to 35 hours. In addition, the union, under its boss Claus Weselsky, also wants to negotiate collective agreements for parts of the infrastructure. The railway has so far rejected both points.
Collective bargaining at the railway began at the beginning of November. After the second round of talks, Claus Weselsky declared the negotiations had failed and initiated a ballot. The GDL paralyzed large parts of rail traffic in Germany a total of four times with two warning strikes and two longer strikes. Long-distance, regional and freight traffic were at a standstill for days.
The GDL ended the most recent industrial dispute at the end of January early and surprisingly returned to the negotiating table. Since then, we have spoken to each other behind closed doors. Nothing was made public during this time, neither about the progress of the talks nor about the mood between the two sides. Negotiations took place in Berlin. It was said that the negotiations were moderated by former Federal Interior Minister Thomas de Maizière and Daniel Günther, the Prime Minister of Schleswig-Holstein. “DB is now assessing the current situation and considering the next steps.”
