The train drivers’ strike also began in passenger transport during the night. Yesterday evening, the railway failed with an urgent application against the strike at the Frankfurt Labor Court. The strike is expected to last 24 hours.
Accompanied by growing criticism, Deutsche Bahn train drivers have once again stopped work. The strike in passenger transport began at 2 a.m. and is expected to last 24 hours, as a railway spokeswoman confirmed in the morning. Passengers must expect major restrictions.
The railway has organized an emergency timetable that secures around a fifth of long-distance train traffic. Regional transport and the S-Bahn of Deutsche Bahn are also affected. The offer there can vary greatly depending on the region. Even after the strike ended on Wednesday, passengers must continue to expect train cancellations and delays.
Court rejects railway’s urgent application
Yesterday evening, Deutsche Bahn failed in its attempt to stop the strike using legal means. The Frankfurt Labor Court rejected an interim injunction against the strike call and classified the strike as “not disproportionate”. It rejected the company’s accusation that the strike announcement was far too short-term and that there had also been “unlawful demands.”
The railway announced that it would appeal the decision and “have the verdict reviewed in the second instance before the Hessian State Labor Court,” as the company said in a statement. “In the interest of our customers, we (…) are doing everything we can to stop the wave strike,” emphasized Florian Weh, managing director of the employers’ association AGV Move, which negotiates on behalf of Deutsche Bahn.
The appeal is not scheduled to be heard until Tuesday around noon – after the strike begins. If the Hessian State Labor Court decides differently than the Frankfurt Labor Court, the GDL would have to interrupt its strike.
Weselsky satisfied
The GDL federal chairman Claus Weselsky was satisfied with the court decision. “The court has confirmed it once again: the GDL strikes are proportionate, permissible, legal and therefore suitable for pursuing the legitimate demands of the railway workers through industrial action.”
The train drivers’ union now hopes “that the Hesse State Labor Court will confirm the legality of our industrial action,” he emphasized.
Freight transport strike started earlier
The GDL had already started its freight transport strike on Monday at 6 p.m. This is the sixth industrial dispute in the collective bargaining dispute with the railway that has been simmering for months. The GDL is fighting for higher salaries and fewer working hours. The crux of the matter is the requirement that shift workers should work 35 instead of 38 hours a week for the same money.
On Sunday evening, the GDL called for the next strike in the ongoing collective bargaining dispute with the railways, and this was done at significantly shorter notice than in the previous industrial disputes. GDL boss Weselsky wants to increase the pressure on the railways with such “wave strikes”. The railway had sharply criticized the “far too short lead time of just 22 hours” for the strike. This is a “blatant imposition” for passengers. Trade union Weselsky also did not rule out strikes over Easter.