2024-03-12 05:50:14
Deutsche Bahn no longer wants to accept another strike by the train drivers’ union GDL. The company has now filed a lawsuit.
Deutsche Bahn has filed a lawsuit because of another planned strike by the train drivers’ union GDL. The company announced on Monday that an urgent application for an interim injunction had been submitted to the labor court in Frankfurt am Main.
According to DB Human Resources Director Martin Seiler, the short lead time of just 22 hours in particular is “a sheer imposition”. The wave strikes announced by the GDL are disproportionate. “We are doing everything in the interests of our customers to prevent this strike,” said Seiler. According to the court, the application will be heard from 4:30 p.m.
The DB had already tried to avert a strike by the GDL with an interim injunction in January. However, the Hessian state labor court rejected the application at this point.
GDL goes on strike for the sixth time
The train drivers’ union GDL announced another 24-hour strike on Sunday. This should start on Tuesday at 2 a.m. and last until Wednesday at 2 a.m. It is the sixth time that the GDL has gone on strike in this collective bargaining round. Union boss Claus Weselsky had already announced before the previous strike that the railway and passengers would be given significantly less notice in the future in order to prepare for the industrial action.
The railway had previously allowed a deadline set by the German Train Drivers’ Union (GDL) of Sunday evening, 6 p.m., to submit a new written offer to pass. This “inevitably leads to industrial action,” said GDL boss Claus Weselsky and assigned the railway responsibility for the strike.
Despite the ongoing collective bargaining dispute, the federal government does not want to get involved. Government spokesman Steffen Hebestreit said this on Monday. But the strikes affect a lot of people, which both sides have to keep an eye on. There should be a solution soon. But this is purely an appeal. The federal government is not planning to restrict the right to strike, not even in certain, particularly important areas.
A spokesman for the FDP-led Ministry of Transport said the appeal was aimed particularly at the train drivers’ union GDL. She must return to the negotiating table. A formal arbitration procedure is necessary. The GDL spans the spectrum.
Bahn and GDL will not agree
The railway previously announced that offers and solutions could be submitted and discussed directly at the negotiating table. “We are convinced that we will only be able to reach an agreement through dialogue at the negotiating table,” said DB Human Resources Director Martin Seiler, according to the statement. Switching to a written exchange of offers and answers at this very advanced stage of the negotiations would not be productive. At this point, DB also expressed its willingness to enter into formal arbitration.
Formal arbitration would involve one or two people being appointed as neutral third parties to reach a collective bargaining agreement. Unlike the moderators already in place, arbitrators shape the conduct of the negotiations according to the process and content. In addition, at the end of an arbitration there is an arbitrator’s decision if the collective bargaining parties have not been able to reach an amicable agreement.
The moderators had proposed a reduction in weekly working hours – a sticking point in the deadlocked negotiations – in two stages from 38 to 36 hours with full wage compensation by 2028. However, this is not sufficient for the GDL in the proposed form. In a letter dated March 8th to the railway negotiators, the GDL was also dissatisfied with the wage increase that had been offered so far and the term of the collective agreement. 30 months is too long. According to the GDL, the railway is also pushing for the elimination of previous holiday choice models, which is unacceptable.