The EVG agrees to a collective bargaining agreement for 180,000 employees, which brings in 70,000 of them significantly more than the others. Internally, there is potential for conflict.
The wage conflict at the railways is over, a strike by the EVG union is off the table. In the ballot, 52.3 percent of those taking part in the vote spoke out in favor of the present arbitration award, with which a good 180,000 DB employees would receive an inflation compensation bonus of 2,850 euros in October and then regularly more money from December.
The EVG speaks of a “collective agreement based on solidarity”, the railways of a compromise that “demands a lot” from the group.
How long will the railways not be on strike?
Up to and including October, passengers can rest assured that industrial action will not affect their journeys. The railway and transport union (EVG) now has a new collective agreement that is valid until the end of March 2025. And the rival union, the Union of German Locomotive Drivers (GDL), still has a peace obligation with DB until October 31.
After that, the next wage negotiations are on the agenda, in which GDL boss Claus Weselsky wants to achieve, among other things, 555 euros more per month and less working hours for employees in shift work. Warning strikes are then possible again – Weselsky is considered a particularly tough negotiator.
How did the collective bargaining between EVG and DB go?
Extremely tough. There has been a dispute over the new collective agreement since the end of February. In the first rounds of negotiations, progress was very little – so the union put pressure on twice with warning strikes. A third warning strike was prevented by the labor court in Frankfurt am Main in mid-May. Negotiations only made better progress after the court meeting, but ultimately collapsed at a meeting at the end of June. A two-week arbitration process followed, with the arbitration award as the result.
What does this arbitration say?
A good 180,000 employees at Deutsche Bahn will now receive 410 euros more per month in two stages over a period of 25 months. The first stage of 200 euros is to be paid from December, the second from August of the coming year. In addition, all employees are to receive a tax and duty-free inflation compensation premium of 2,850 euros in October. Structural increases in the tariff tables were also agreed for individual professional groups after the end of the term. The incomes of a good 70,000 employees will thus increase significantly once again.
Meanwhile, DB HR Director Martin Seiler emphasized that the collective agreement also contains points from which the group hopes to increase productivity. For example, a more flexible working time model was agreed at DB Cargo. “This degree also ensures our future viability, so that we can shape and successfully master the transformation together,” said Seiler.
How is the mood at EVG internally?
48 percent voted for an indefinite strike in the ballot – but it should have been a relief for the EVG board that a majority was in favor of the arbitration result. “Sure, the enthusiasm is certainly limited in parts,” said negotiator Cosima Ingenschay. But the result is one of solidarity. Those responsible for EVG have recently repeatedly emphasized that those professional groups who will not benefit from the structural adjustments this time should be given special consideration in the next round of collective bargaining in 2025.
However, a poorer voting result could have led to great anger and even resignations at the EVG. According to trade union circles, some large state associations had expressed skepticism about the arbitration proposal. This is, at least in terms of increase and duration, significantly lower than what the union had once demanded.
Source: Stern
