FRENCH RAIL WORKERS’ STRIKE FOR PENSION RIGHTS

German train crews launched three days of strike action in November bringing rail fright to a halt in the longest industrial action since 1994. The latest strike followed 24- hour action in Octobers which brought regional and local rail traffic to a halt in the bitter dispute between Deutsche Bahn (DB) and the GDL rail union in its bid for a 31 per cent salary increase for train crews. Members of GDL, the smallest of the country’s three rail unions has waged successful strike on the German national rail company’s regional network and overhead urban rail services. The union has rejected a pay offer of 9.5 per cent plus a one- off payment of £1,394, but said it was willing to resume talks. Agreements in Germany are usually struck for all grades in an industry and it is very unusual for separate talks to take place. In July, the other two unions, Transnet and GDBA, won a record 4.5 per cent pay increase plus a one-off payment of £400 in a deal with government- owned DB from January 2008. Inflation is currently running at 1.9 per cent. But GDL’s longstanding policy is for a separate agreement for its 12,000 train drivers, guards and other crew in DB. Transnet and GDBA wanted the July deal to cover all DB’s 134,000 employees. But GDL president Manfred Schell insists on an agreement well above that struck by the other two unions, including a claim for a monthly starting salary of £1,660 for drivers, equivalent to a 31 per cent pay rise. However, GDL says this is one of the lowest salary starts for the grade in Europe and almost 96 per cent of the membership voted in favour of strike action. Public sector strikes in Germany are rare and behind the industrial action lurks the stagnating purchasing power of German workers and the government’s quest to privatise DB. Rail workers’ buying power for more than a decade has been stymied by wage freezes as the government prepares the operator for privatisation, with a first tranche expected to be sold off next year. Basing its research on Ministry of Labour statistics, a report last month in the newspaper “Bild” revealed that although the average salary rose by 48 per cent in the last 20 years, at the same time tax, national insurance and other deductions have increased by 66 per cent. NO RIGHT TO STRIKE There is no constitutional right to strike in Germany and GDL’s plans for a series of stoppages in August were frustrated after DB obtained an injunction that declared them illegal because they “hinder competition at the national level”. This did not affect major regional and local stoppages, especially commuter services in Berlin and Hamburg, which were allowed to go ahead. DB then agreed to withdraw its legal action and GDL said it would suspend its strike action after two mediators were appointed. At the end of August, the two sides accepted the mediators’ conclusions that GDL should be allowed to negotiate separately for its members. The union said it would extend suspension of its strike until September 30 to allow time for talks with management. At the same time, it was decided that separate talks take place with the other two unions to look at DB’s overall grading structure. SUPPORT There is widespread public support for the strike. While DB made profits of £1.3 billion last year and its management received 60 per cent salary increases, wage austerity continues to affect much of the general population. In addition, a clause in Transnet and GDBA’s agreement with DB allows them to reopen pay talks if GDL wins more than their July settlement. The separate talks on DB’s grading structure could facilitate train crew pay into a new overall arrangement for the whole industry and, at the same time, result in a higher settlement for the other two unions’ members. Mr Schell warned that GDL would consider indefinite strike action if Deutche Bahn failed to improve on its latest offer. 25 GERMAN RAIL WORKERS STRIKE Germany is hit by strike action over pay by German rail workers facing privatisation STRIKE: Rail workers on strike stand at Munich station, southern Germany demanding higher wages and new contracts. Sign reads "This station is strikebound".