Berlin (dpa) – Deutsche Bahn passengers can hope again: In the deadlocked collective bargaining conflict with the train drivers’ union GDL is moving.
The company wants to move the tried and tested GDL back to negotiations with a “new and improved” offer, as the German press agency learned from the environment of the two parties to the collective bargaining agreement. The offer should be presented to the union by the weekend, it said. The GDL had previously threatened to prepare for the next strike on Monday if the railway did not submit a “negotiable offer” by then.
The contents of the planned offer were initially not known. The company is intensively examining where the two sides can get closer, said a railway spokeswoman. “In the interests of our customers, we urgently need to come to an agreement now.”
GDL had increased pressure
The GDL chairman Claus Weselsky had previously increased the pressure. “After the last strike, we gave Deutsche Bahn (DB) time to think, but it seems to me that the Deutsche Bahn management takes a bit of time to think about it,” criticized Weselsky. The train is apparently playing for time, but that can no longer be an option.
The GDL has already struck three times in the current collective bargaining round for its goals, most recently in passenger transport for five days. The collective bargaining dispute is about higher pay and better working conditions for employees. The union also wants to expand its sphere of influence in the group.
Understanding of the GDL is shrinking
A good every second German has no sympathy for the latest strike. 53 percent of those questioned expressed themselves accordingly in a Yougov survey for the German press agency. On the other hand, 36 percent understand the action.
The strikes during the holiday season hit commuters as well as holidaymakers, and the third strike in passenger traffic also extended over a weekend. Around every seventh German citizen was affected by the work stoppages according to the survey.
The GDL and the railway have so far not been able to agree on a deal despite months of wage disputes. The GDL is demanding 3.2 percent more wages for a term of 28 months and a corona premium of 600 euros. The railway wants to extend the tariff increase over a longer period of time and had recently offered a term of 36 months. In addition, she agreed to the corona premium.
The GDL is also fighting against planned changes to the company’s pension system. In addition, it not only wants to represent engine drivers and train attendants, but also to conclude general collective agreements for employees in the workshops and in the infrastructure as well as for trainees.