Great traffic chaos again in Germany

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Germany is slowing down like France: one strike follows another. It will be like this again in the coming days: Work stoppages are planned at railways and various airports.

Rail traffic has largely come to a standstill

The wage dispute between the railway and transport union (EVG) and Deutsche Bahn (DB) is still far away. According to the union, between 03:00 and 11:00 on Friday morning, employees of all railway companies where negotiations are taking place must stop working.

“This time, by calling for a temporary warning strike early in the morning, we are sending a clear signal that we do not want to hit companies, not passengers,” says EVG’s Cosima Ingenschay.

However, Deutsche Bahn’s long-distance traffic, in particular, may come to a standstill throughout the day as trains cannot depart in the morning.

An SBB spokesperson told Blick that “major restrictions” are expected on German rail traffic. However, the effects in Switzerland are likely to be marginal. The extent of the failures is still unclear, but SBB is “prepared”.

First fight at the end of March

EVG continues negotiations with rail company Transdev this Wednesday. Talks should also continue next week, especially with Deutsche Bahn, which is the focus.

In negotiations with the sector, employee representatives demand at least 650 euros per month or twelve percent and twelve-month terms for high-income groups. The union is currently conducting second round negotiations with around 50 railway companies.

Deutsche Bahn has recently made clear that it thinks a public service level compromise for the rail industry is conceivable. In the public sector, there is a proposal in several stages for tax and royalty-free inflation adjustments for a total of €3,000 on the table. From March 2024 there will be a base amount of 200 euros, followed by a 5.5 percent wage increase.

The company announced on Sunday that a conclusion can be reached quickly in the next round of negotiations in Fulda on April 25. EVG, on the other hand, immediately rejected such a tariff solution for its industry.

Numerous flight cancellations in Switzerland too

At the end of March, EVG had already organized the first warning strike together with the Ver.di union. At that time, not only regional and long-distance rail transport, but also air and water transport had come to a standstill.

This is the case again this time. At Dusseldorf, Hamburg and Cologne/Bonn airports, passengers will again have to prepare for delays and flight cancellations over the next few days. The Ver.di union has called for renewed warning strikes from Thursday. Longer wait times and even flight cancellations or cancellations can be expected, according to Ver.di.

This affects Switzerland. Swiss spokesman Michael Stief told Blick that four flights from Hamburg to Zurich will be canceled tomorrow, Thursday. However, Zurich-Hamburg flights will be carried out. Two return flights to and from Dusseldorf were also cancelled. On Friday, April 21, five flights from Hamburg to Zurich and one from Hamburg to Geneva will be cancelled. Relevant outbound flights are carried out. There are also two return flights to and from Düsseldorf.

“Alternatives are currently being sought for affected passengers,” Stief reassures. (SDA/rae)

Source :Blick