The Deutsche Bahn and the train drivers' union GDL are fighting for the sovereignty of interpretation after the end of the three-day rail strike.

The railway rated the labor dispute as a failure for the union.

On the other hand, GDL boss Claus Weselsky said that the first wave of strikes had gone well.

The railway tries in vain to downplay the successful strike.

"The GDL top has not achieved its actual industrial action goal," said Bahn spokesman Achim Stauß on Friday morning after the end of the strike.

"Only a quarter of 20,000 train drivers took part in the strike." From other areas of the railway into which the GDL wants to expand, just 120 employees would have been on strike.

He again called on the union to negotiate.

The suspicion arises that the GDL is pursuing completely different goals, namely to expand its sphere of influence - on the back of the passengers.

Stauß left it open as to whether the railway will now present a new tariff offer.

Millions of passengers affected

GDL boss Claus Weselsky also took stock of the train drivers' strike on Friday.

He assessed the labor dispute as a complete success.

"Either there is an improved offer on the table, or we will again leave the trains in this country standing," he said in Berlin.

In doing so, he refrained from naming a specific date for a second wave of strikes.

However, he announced a protest rally next Tuesday (August 17) in front of the Bahn Tower on Potsdamer Platz.

After that, it will only be "a very short time" before another strike.

A new labor dispute will be announced with a larger lead than the last 15 hours.

There are currently no plans for an indefinite strike.

GDL boss Claus Weselsky protested against allegations that the GDL actually had political goals and was only pushing the tariff demands.

"We do not allow ourselves to be persuaded that this is a political strike," he said of the statements made by the Federal Government's rail commissioner, Enak Ferlemann.

The railway had recently offered the GDL wage increases in two steps: 1.5 percent on January 1, 2022 and 1.7 percent on March 1, 2023, with a term until the end of June 2024. This is not enough for the GDL.

Among other things, she calls for earlier wage increases, a shorter term and a corona bonus of 600 euros.

Bahn spokesman Stauß admitted that millions of passengers were affected by the labor dispute.

The group was able to maintain about a quarter of the long-distance and 40 percent of the local transport offer.

“After the strike, trains started running again according to plan.” During the day, it would run normally again. However, the trains on Friday and the weekend would be significantly busier than usual. This also has to do with the rescheduled journeys.

In freight traffic, the railroad ran supply-relevant trains, said Stauß.

Over the days, however, around 1000 trains have stopped.

"We are now gradually reducing this traffic jam." Stauß did not provide any information on the amount of damage.