Current:Home > InvestGerman union calls on train drivers to strike this week in a rancorous pay dispute-LoTradeCoin
German union calls on train drivers to strike this week in a rancorous pay dispute
View Date:2024-12-23 21:23:24
BERLIN (AP) — A labor union representing German train drivers said Tuesday that it’s calling its members out on a 20-hour strike later this week as a bitter round of pay negotiations with the country’s main rail operator gets under way.
The GDL union called on drivers, guards and others with Germany’s state-owned railway operator Deutsche Bahn to walk off the job from 10 p.m. Wednesday to 6 p.m. Thursday. Limited “warning strikes” are a common tactic in German pay negotiations.
Deutsche Bahn has in the past run much-reduced services during GDL strikes.
GDL is seeking a raise of 555 euros ($593) per month for employees plus a payment of up to 3,000 euros ($3,257) to counter inflation. It also is calling for working hours to be reduced from 38 to 35 hours per week without a pay reduction.
Negotiations started last week and are scheduled to resume on Thursday. Deutsche Bahn said it has made an offer that amounts to an 11% raise. Deutsche Bahn personnel chief Martin Seiler said in a statement that the GDL leadership “is now showing its true face — it was never interested in solutions.”
GDL accused Deutsche Bahn of having made clear that it wasn’t prepared to discuss its core demands.
Earlier this year, negotiations between Deutsche Bahn and a bigger rail workers’ union, EVG — a bitter rival of the traditionally more aggressive GDL — went to arbitration.
In that dispute, both sides accepted arbitrators’ proposal of a pay increase of 410 euros per month in two stages as part of a deal valid for 25 months. It also featured a one-off, tax-free payment of 2,850 euros per employee to counter high inflation.
The rail talks haven’t been the only tense negotiations as Europe’s biggest economy grappled with high inflation. Germany’s annual inflation rate has now fallen back to 3.8%, its lowest level since August 2021.
veryGood! (1)
Related
- Oprah Winfrey Addresses Claim She Was Paid $1 Million by Kamala Harris' Campaign
- Antarctica’s Winds Increasing Risk of Sea Level Rise from Massive Totten Glacier
- Rachel Bilson Reveals Her Favorite—and Least Favorite—Sex Positions
- Today’s Climate: May 27, 2010
- US overdose deaths are down, giving experts hope for an enduring decline
- Gwyneth Paltrow Shares Sex Confessions About Her Exes Brad Pitt and Ben Affleck
- See Kylie Jenner and Stormi Webster’s Sweet Matching Moment at New York Fashion Party
- Dancing With the Stars' Jenna Johnson Talks First Mother’s Day as a Mom and Shares Gift Ideas
- NFL Week 10 injury report: Live updates on active, inactive players for Sunday's games
- Directors Guild of America reaches truly historic deal with Hollywood studios
Ranking
- Trump pledged to roll back protections for transgender students. They’re flooding crisis hotlines
- Why Worry About Ticks? This One Almost Killed Me
- Today’s Climate: May 11, 2010
- Today’s Climate: April 28, 2010
- Record-setting dry conditions threaten more US wildfires, drinking water supplies
- There's a bit of good news about monkeypox. Is it because of the vaccine?
- Today’s Climate: May 3, 2010
- Today’s Climate: May 27, 2010
Recommendation
-
Oregon's Dan Lanning, Indiana's Curt Cignetti pocket big bonuses after Week 11 wins
-
10 Senators Call for Investigation into EPA Pushing Scientists Off Advisory Boards
-
3 Republican Former EPA Heads Rebuke Trump EPA on Climate Policy & Science
-
Whatever happened to the baby shot 3 times in the Kabul maternity hospital bombing?
-
AP Top 25: Oregon remains No. 1 as Big Ten grabs 4 of top 5 spots; Georgia, Miami out of top 10
-
Robert Kennedy Jr.'s Instagram account has been restored
-
Coronavirus FAQ: Does a faint line on a self-test mean I'm barely contagious?
-
Late-stage cervical cancer cases are on the rise