Over pay, Germany’s public Transport network is halted
During one of the largest strikes in German history, the country’s transportation network is near a standstill.
Shortly after midnight, staff working at airports, ports, railways, buses, and subways went on a 24-hour strike.
Demanding higher wages to cope with the increasing cost of living, two of Germany’s biggest unions are making their stance known. Interior Minister Nancy Faeser expressed optimism that an agreement would be achieved this week.
On Monday, she informed Reuters that a lot of public service employees are being impacted by soaring energy prices and inflation. She added that it is their responsibility to negotiate a favorable agreement. There have been some minor strikes by other public servants in recent times.
Dubbed as the “mega strike” by local media, Monday’s strike has caused disruption to commuter and regional trains operated by Deutsche Bahn, the national rail operator of Germany. In addition, local transportation services such as trams and buses are not running in seven states.
According to an AFP news agency report, one protester in Berlin mentioned that petrol and food prices have gone up, and it’s affecting their wallet.
Cancellation of thousands of flights, including those at Munich and Frankfurt, two of the largest airports in the country, has been reported. Strike action on Sunday also caused multiple flight disruptions at Munich Airport.
“I am a bit shocked actually,” said one man, who was trying to fly to the Spanish city of Málaga. “I didn’t hear of it [the strike], so I have to find out what to do right now.”
Germany’s airport association said about 380,000 air travelers would be affected by the strike but added it was “beyond any imaginable and justifiable measure”.
Jenny Hill, the BBC’s Berlin correspondent, said it was very rare for a dispute over pay to escalate so dramatically in Germany, but this time two of the country’s largest unions have joined forces.
Verdi represents about 2.5 million employees across the public sector, including in public transport and at airports. It wants to secure a 10.5% pay rise for staff.
EVG represents about 230,000 employees at Deutsche Bahn and other bus companies. It wants a 12% rise in pay.
Both unions hope the strike will increase pressure on employers ahead of another round of pay negotiations this week.
In an interview with the German newspaper Bild, the chief of Verdi, Frank Werneke, described the pay rise as “a matter of survival for many thousands of employees.”
“The people are not only underpaid, they are hopelessly overworked,” he said.
EVG chairman, Martin Burkert, told the regional Augsburger Allgemeine newspaper that employers had not yet made a viable offer to them and warned there could be further strikes, including over the Easter holiday break.
On Monday he added to Reuters: “We expect an offer over which we can negotiate. To this day we don’t have one.”
Ms Faeser said that the government had “presented a good offer”.
“I now expect the unions to move away from their high demands and meet us somewhere along the way,” she added.
Deutsche Bahn is among the organisations that have condemned the strike, describing it as “completely excessive, groundless and unnecessary”.
Some employer representatives have also warned the unions are making unreasonable demands that risk alienating the public.
Nevertheless, successful wage increases have been negotiated recently. Postal workers won an 11.5% pay rise in early March.
Monday’s strike follows a similar walkout in February More than 2,300 flights were cancelled and representatives of small and medium business associations accused the unions of taking the whole country hostage for their own interests.
There have also been multiple walkouts by other public service sectors in recent weeks, including childcare and education.