German rail operator, union reach pay deal to end wave of strikes

Berlin (dpa) – German railway operator Deutsche Bahn and a train drivers’ union have reached a deal over pay to put an end to a series of national strikes.

The state premiers of Lower Saxony and Schleswig-Holstein, Stephan Weil and Daniel Guenther respectively, announced the deal between Deutsche Bahn and German train drivers’ union GDL on Thursday.

The GDL went on strike three times in August and September for multiple days, affecting commuters as well as many holiday travellers across the country. There were also disruptions in freight traffic.

“In the end we have a result that can be accepted by all parties,” Guenther said in a statement.

The deal improves on a previous pay offer by Deutsche Bahn, giving the drivers a total 3.3-per-cent pay rise by March 2023. Among other details, they will also receive two separate payments of up to 600 and 400 euros to compensate for hardships during the coronavirus pandemic.

According to an earlier statement, there had been “intensive talks in order to find joint solutions in the collective bargaining round … in the interests of passengers and employees.”

A rival railways union to the GDL, the EVG, said it would examine the offer made to GDL and compare it to its own deal with Deutsche Bahn.