Germany’s train drivers have brought rail traffic to a standstill again when they began a six-day strike to push their demands in a rancorous dispute with the country’s main railway operator over working hours and pay.
    • GenEcon@lemm.ee
      11·
      10 months ago

      The problem is that the main point open for discussion has nothing to do with labour rights.

      While DB offered 13 % for 2 years and a reduction of working hours from 38 to 37 hours (which is pretty close to the demands – or something at least worth discussing), the main demand still open has to do with german law.

      There are two competing unions. And to avoid having two different labour agreements (and therefore double the strikes), only the larger one is able to negotiate. Therefore the GDL – the smaller union – is demanding that their labour agreement is also valid for people working in Infrastructure, even though they aren’t organized in the GDL, but in a different union.

      So unless the GDL is able to negotiate also for the infrastructure workers, they will be irrelevant in a couple years. The EVG – the far larger union – last year negotiated for example +26.7 % for security personell and 12 % for service staff for two years + 2850 tax free once – also by striking.

      So unless the GDL is able to 1. Negotiate a better deal than the EVG (because only the better agreement is valid) and 2. Is able to negotiate for people who aren’t in their union, they will be irrelevant. Therefore the strike isnt primarily for worker rights, but for the survival of the Union and their bosses.

  • Ensign_Crab@lemmy.worldEnglish
    47·
    10 months ago

    And Germany didn’t instantly and irreparably collapse into a dystopian hellscape?

    I’m starting to think that the rationale for breaking the rail strike in the US might have been bullshit.

      • naturalgasbadOP
        103·
        10 months ago

        That’s because strikes are communist and communism bad

      • kool_newt@lemm.eeEnglish
        1116·
        10 months ago

        You get how those can both be true right?

        A less pro-union or anti-union president would’ve also broke the railroad strike – and the UAW strike and whatever other stirke. You let perfection be the enemy of progress. You for some reason expect a Democrat to be a leftist and are upset when they’re not. The other guy is even more not leftist.

        • AdmiralShat@programming.devEnglish
          131·
          10 months ago

          You for some reason think I expect this? Damn dude thanks for putting words in my mouth, great example

          • kool_newt@lemm.eeEnglish
            26·
            10 months ago

            In a two person/two party race a comment denigrating one candidate effectively promotes the other (this is math, not my opinion).

            Like, what was admiralshat’s purpose in making that comment? To make liberals look bad? Who does that benefit? Republicans, even though nobody mentioned them.

            It it was a meaningless comment, it’s a real dangerous type of comment to make as we’re about to slide into fascism.

            • Cyclohexane@lemmy.ml
              3·
              10 months ago

              The purpose of that comment is to criticize comment. It is true, less support for biden means less chances of him winning against trump. That is not an endorsement of trump. Refusing both candidates is as much a support for trump as it is support for biden.

              I may slightly prefer biden, but I’m still going to criticize him. I will not let the two party system hold my opinions hostage, and scare me with the other side.

  • AutoTL;DR@lemmings.worldBEnglish
    1·
    10 months ago

    This is the best summary I could come up with:

    BERLIN (AP) — Germany’s train drivers brought rail traffic to a standstill again early Wednesday when they began a six-day strike to push their demands in a rancorous dispute with the country’s main railway operator over working hours and pay.

    The strike by the GDL union will affect passenger services and freight trains operated by state-owned Deutsche Bahn until 6 p.m. (1700 GMT) on Monday.

    “European freight traffic across the Alps, Poland or to Scandinavia as well as the seaports in Holland or Belgium will also be affected,” said Deutsche Bahn.

    Even before the strike, a significant drop in cargo volumes had been registered because many customers had canceled shipments, German news agency dpa reported.

    On Wednesday, the train operator again rejected the union’s proposals as a basis for further negotiations, calling them a “repetition of well-known maximum demands,” dpa reported.

    “If things are so deadlocked that we obviously can no longer talk to each other, then we urgently need mediation or arbitration,” Volker Wissing said on public radio Deutschlandfunk.

    The original article contains 311 words, the summary contains 170 words. Saved 45%. I’m a bot and I’m open source!