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Deutsche Bahn is expected to strike from Wednesday to next Monday. The German Locomotive Drivers’ Union (GDL) is responding to a third offer from Deutsche Bahn, with which it has been on a wage strike since November.

The union demands one Reduction of working hours for shift workers from 38 to 35 hours with the same pay. Deutsche Bahn refuses to meet demand because otherwise it would need too many new staff – in a working environment where there is a shortage of skilled workers.

Last Friday, Deutsche Bahn made an offer to the train drivers’ union: working one hour less for the same wage from 2026. In addition, 4.8 percent more wages from August and another 5 percent more from April 2025. The term of the collective labor agreement must be 32 ​​. months. The union demands 555 euros more wages per month and a term of twelve months.

Because the GDL is not satisfied with Deutsche Bahn’s offer, it is now going on strike for the fourth time in the ongoing collective labor agreement negotiation dispute. There were warning strikes in November and December, followed by a three-day industrial action in January.

We look back at previous strikes and what they achieved.

2007 and 2008

In the spring of 2007, the GDL called for an independent collective labor agreement for drivers, train conductors and catering staff on board. The model presented provided for better working conditions and an increase in basic wages of up to 40 percent. Because Deutsche Bahn did not want to accept this, the union members went on strike during the first nationwide warning strike on July 3 and 10, 2007. In a strike vote, 95.8 percent of GDL members were in favor of a strike on August 9. However, Deutsche Bahn had this prohibited by means of summary proceedings.

After negotiations failed to produce results, strikes of varying duration were called again on different dates in October. This time only local and regional transport were affected.

When the Chemnitz Labor Court lifted the ban on strikes in freight and long-distance transport in early November 2007, the strikes also spread to these areas. Freight transport work was halted for 42 hours – and DB failed to put a new offer on the negotiating table in time. That is why the longest strike to date with the greatest impact took place from November 14 to 17.

In January 2008, the parties to the dispute reached an agreement To increase rates by an average of 11 percent and make one-off payments of 800 euros. The The weekly working hours were reduced from 41 to 40 hours with the same pay. In April, the majority of union members approved the new collective labor agreement.

2011

After a strike in Bavarian regional transport failed a year earlier, the GDL struck again. In 2011, she called for a federal framework collective labor agreement for train drivers that would eliminate pay differences between Deutsche Bahn and private railways. Collective bargaining agreements were concluded with some private railway companies: this meant 2 percent more pay for DB train drivers, as well as improvements in night work, holidays and pension provisions.

Even though there were strikes and arbitrations for months, the labor dispute did not achieve its even higher goals. The boycott was stopped in August 2011, partly due to declining enthusiasm for the strike.

2014 and 2015

In the autumn of 2014, the GDL demanded 5 percent more wages for train staff, a weekly working time of 38 instead of 39 hours, a maximum of 50 hours of overtime and weekends off that lasted at least from 10 p.m. on Friday to 6 a.m. on Monday. GDL members went on strike nine times between the fall of 2014 and May 2015.

Three quarters of the long-distance trains could not run. As a result, the German rail network was paralyzed for approximately 420 hours, which meant a loss of sales of several hundred million euros for Deutsche Bahn. At the end of June 2015, a new collective labor agreement was reached in an arbitration procedure, which stipulated a pay increase of 5.1 percent and a weekly working time of 38 hours.

2021

In October 2021, in the middle of the corona pandemic, the GDL demanded, among other things, a salary increase of more than 4.8 percent, the introduction of mandatory annual shift planning and a one-off corona allowance of 1,300 euros. As part of three strike waves, there were a total of more than 265 hours of strikes in freight transport and 216 hours in passenger transport.

Deutsche Bahn gave in and an agreement was reached on a 3.3 percent pay increase and the payment of two corona bonuses totaling 1,000 euros.

(anb)