The EVG union wants to negotiate hard on a new collective agreement at the beginning of next year.
(Photo: dpa)
Frankfurt The newly elected head of the EVG railway workers’ union is expecting a tough bargaining round with Deutsche Bahn at the beginning of next year. Martin Burkert said on Tuesday in Berlin that he could only advise employers to pay wage increases in line with the level of inflation. “Willingness to strike will be very high, it can also take a long time.”
These are not good prospects for rail customers. In the late summer of last year, the competing and much smaller train drivers’ union GDL paralyzed large parts of Deutsche Bahn’s traffic in several waves of strikes. Agreement was reached after about a month.
At that time, the EVG had agreed to a rather moderate collective agreement in view of the enormous economic burden caused by the pandemic. Burkert is now calling for a significant price increase in view of the inflation. “Everyone looks at the ongoing collective bargaining in the public sector,” said the EVG boss.
Since collective bargaining rounds are pending at several railway companies at the same time, there would be a risk of large-scale industrial disputes if the employers refused, said Burkert. “If there is a strike this time, 50 trains will not run because everyone is negotiating at the same time.”
Top jobs of the day
Find the best jobs now and
be notified by email.
The trade unionist sees a need for discussion, and not just on the subject of money. Deutsche Bahn is hiring 24,000 new employees. But that’s not enough if around 19,500 people stayed “at home” at the same time because they were either retiring or changing jobs: “DB is losing employees due to better offers in terms of money and working conditions.”
According to the EVG, Bahn loses many employees
In addition, Deutsche Bahn has ordered more than 100 new ICEs, which also requires new employees. “It needs more adjustments. The number of training places must also be increased,” Burkert demanded.
The workload is enormous, the state-owned company has now accumulated more than six million hours of overtime, complained the EVG boss. “We are concerned about the approaching winter. We already have sick leave averaging eleven percent.” And the flu epidemic is yet to come.
The greatest sick leave was during the nine-euro ticket. The value had temporarily risen to more than 30 percent in some critical areas. Burkert therefore warned politicians not to lose sight of the needs of the railway workforce with the 49-euro ticket just discussed.
At the same time, the union boss invited the rival GDL to cooperate. In the past, there were sometimes violent arguments between the GDL and the EVG and their members. The GDL wants to expand its sphere of influence, especially with Deutsche Bahn. “The door to the GDL is open. In these times it is important to strengthen cohesion and not to hostile each other on site,” said Burkert.
On Wednesday, the EVG wants to demonstrate in front of the Federal Ministry of Transport against the policy of Federal Minister of Transport Volker Wissing (FDP). “The air burns in rail freight transport. We have to expect that customers will jump off the train and go back to the truck,” said Burkert, just one topic that politicians urgently need to address.
More: Unpunctual trains, poor quality – Bahn boss Lutz promises: “It will be better in 2023”