In Germany, a country renowned for the quality of social dialogue, social conflicts are increasing.

After tense wage negotiations in industry and services, train drivers launched the longest strike ever experienced by German railways on Wednesday January 24.

Planned to paralyze rail traffic for six days, it is expected to cost hundreds of millions of euros to Europe's largest economy.

The strike, caused by a conflict over wages and working hours, began on Wednesday at 2 a.m. (1 a.m. GMT) in passenger transport, and on Tuesday evening for freight.

The movement must end Monday January 29 at 6 p.m. (5 p.m. GMT).

Transport Minister Volker Wissing described it as "destructive" at a time when Germany, whose GDP contracted by 0.3% last year, is falling behind in international competition.

Effect on energy deliveries and factories

According to Deutsche Bahn (DB), Germany's state-owned railway company, this will be the longest strike by train drivers in the country, breaking the previous record, set in May 2015. It is the fourth strike since November 2023, against the backdrop of blocked negotiations between DB and the GDL locomotive drivers' union.

The prolonged action “is also a strike against the German economy,” said DB spokeswoman Anja Bröker, warning of the impact on supply chains.

If the railway operator wants to strive to guarantee deliveries to power plants and refineries, disruptions in the supply of automobile, chemical or steel factories cannot be ruled out.

With six European rail freight corridors, Germany is a hub for freight traffic and DB Cargo, DB's freight subsidiary, operates around 20,000 trains per week serving much of the continent.

“Even after the end of a strike, it will take several days or even weeks for the European network to be operational” according to the DB assessment.

Weakened government coalition

This rail paralysis occurs in an already tense context for the logistics sector, characterized by slowdowns and additional costs in the maritime transport of goods caused by the bypass of the Red Sea, at the heart of a security crisis.

“In extreme cases, the cost of this strike could reach a billion euros,” estimates economist Michael Grömling, of the IW Cologne institute, close to the employers.

Deutsche Bahn claims to have “made concessions” and a final “generous offer of up to 13%” of wage increases with the possibility of a reduction in working hours.

The GDL train drivers' union is demanding wage increases to compensate for inflation and a move to a 35-hour week over four days, compared to the current 38 hours a week.

The long strike that is starting is “proportionate, legal and permissible” according to the courts which examined this question, GDL President Claus Weselsky argued on Wednesday on the public channel ZDF.

Faced with DB management "reluctant to discuss", it is therefore appropriate to "strike longer and harder", asserted the head of the minority union within the company of some 211,000 employees.

In Germany, this strike comes on top of a series of social movements which are weakening the government coalition of Social Democratic Chancellor Olaf Scholz, struggling with record unpopularity.

With AFP

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