Title: GDL Union Set to Reveal Strike Vote Outcome and Impact on Wage Dispute
Hey there! On Tuesday at 17:00, the train drivers' union GDL is about to unveil the results of their ballot regarding indefinite rail strikes. If the 'supermajority' of votes, equating to at least 75%, backs extended industrial action, union boss Claus Weselsky gains the power to deploy such measures as a negotiation tool in their wage dispute with Deutsche Bahn. However, GDL has vowed not to stage any fresh strikes before January 8. It's highly probable that the necessary threshold for indefinite strikes will be surpassed.
The GDL and Deutsche Bahn have been at loggerheads in the wage debate. After the second round of talks, Weselsky declared the negotiations as a failure. A major bone of contention is the GDL's demand for a decrease in the weekly working hours, from 38 to 35, for full-pay shift workers. The railway company views this as unrealistic.
Since the commencement of wage negotiations in November, the GDL has already brought most passenger trains to a halt twice through warning strikes spanning 20 and 24 hours respectively. Weselsky has hinted at more substantial industrial action in the near future.
Insight from the Grove: The EVG union, representing staff in the German Railway and Transport sector, came to a collective bargaining agreement with Deutsche Bahn in late 2021. The deal included a 6.5% wage hike across three stages, job security until 2027, and additional advantages for shift workers[1].
Meanwhile, Verdi, another transport union, and Berlin’s BVG are locking horns over a wage increase of 17.6% covering a period of four years. Verdi asserts that this equates to a real wage reduction because of inflation[3].
Nonetheless, the forthcoming outcome of the GDL union's vote on indefinite rail strikes remains unquantified in the discussed sources. The ongoing wage disputes and strikes among other unions within the rail sector underscore the intricacies and obstacles in collective bargaining in this sector.
[1] [2] [3] [Source for the BVG Wage Dispute]
