Millions of passengers affected: strikes paralyze rail and parts of air traffic in Germany

“Linz in short. Then the adventurous journey continues to Augsburg. Deutsche Bahn is contributing to the adventure.” Short messages like this also reached the editors of nachrichten.at today.

• More on the subject: Strikes in Germany: Here you have to be prepared for waiting times

Anyone who wanted to travel within Germany had to use their own car, long-distance buses, rental cars or ride-sharing companies. Connections between Germany and Austria are also affected – and many Austrians who are on a long-planned business trip, for example, are affected.

Urgently postpone non-urgent trips

The ÖBB recommend postponing non-urgent trips to Germany. ÖBB long-distance trains via the Deutsche Eck between Salzburg and Kufstein are expected to run as scheduled. Details about the affected train connections can be found on oebb.at and in the ÖBB timetable app SCOTTY. Westbahn trains to and from Munich and Rosenheim as well as via the Deutsche Eck to Tyrol and Vorarlberg should also run as scheduled. Four Lufthansa flights Vienna-Munich are said to be affected by the strike on Thursday.

• Also read: Tour operators want compensation from Lufthansa (OÖNplus)

Verdi and the German Locomotive Drivers’ Union (GDL) did not coordinate their strikes. Both organizations are now focusing on making their strikes and warning strikes as unplannable as possible. The uncertainty for passengers and passengers continues to increase.

Airport staff went on strike without warning

For example, security staff at Düsseldorf Airport went on a warning strike on Thursday without any warning. Unlike at Frankfurt and Hamburg airports, where Verdi also went on strike at security checks, the action in Düsseldorf was not announced by the union, the airport and the union said. This is intended to prevent the airport and its partners from being able to prepare for the strike. According to the airport, around 320 take-offs and landings were planned for Thursday in the state capital. Passengers had to expect delays and flight cancellations.

• About the background: German unions are shutting down Germany

In addition, there was the warning strike by Lufthansa ground staff announced by Verdi. This led to significant restrictions in air traffic, especially in Frankfurt and Munich. The company announced that it would only be able to fly 10 to 20 percent of its original flight schedule during the strike. The ground staff’s warning strike is scheduled to last until Saturday, 7:10 a.m.

Deutsche Bahn (DB) and passengers had largely prepared for what is now the fifth strike by the GDL train drivers’ union this Thursday. Only around one in five long-distance trains were in use and the stations remained largely empty. Many travelers had brought their journey forward or postponed it to a later day. The union had already announced the strike on Monday after unsuccessful negotiations behind closed doors in the previous weeks.

• Pro Contra: Is Germany on strike? (OÖNplus)

But this ability to plan will soon be over. For the first time in a rail tariff conflict, GDL boss Claus Weselsky wants to rely on so-called wave strikes in the future. The union will then announce rail strikes with significantly less notice, he said a few days ago. It is questionable whether the railway will then have enough time to set up a provisional short timetable as before. Weselsky’s stated goal: to ensure even more unreliability on the rails.

There could also be a strike at Easter

Even over Easter, passengers cannot be sure whether they will be able to travel to their families by train. In any case, Weselsky has so far not agreed to an Easter peace in the stuck rail tariff conflict. “Easter is still a few days away, actually weeks away, and that’s why I can’t answer that,” he said on RBB Inforadio on Thursday.

The rail strike not only affects passenger transport, but also freight transport. The railway subsidiary DB Cargo, which controls around 40 percent of the rail freight transport market, has been on strike since Wednesday evening. Experts fear that the labor disputes at Deutsche Bahn and Lufthansa will have a significant impact on the German economy. “This is an additional burden that we don’t actually need,” said Clemens Fuest, head of the Ifo Institute, on Thursday in the ZDF morning magazine. “The economy is shrinking, and if something like that happens, then suddenly parts are missing from production that cannot be delivered, or people can’t come to meetings, maybe even to work.”

High costs

According to economic expert Michael Grömling from the employer-related Institute of German Economy (IW), a one-day Germany-wide rail strike alone can cost up to 100 million euros a day in economic output if production and business activities of companies across sectors are disrupted. “This also depends on the economic situation and the general functioning of the supply chains. In the event of a strike lasting several days, the costs may not increase linearly, but rather more strongly.

The strike at Deutsche Bahn is scheduled to officially end this Friday at 1 p.m. But passengers still have to expect train cancellations and delays throughout the day. According to its own information, the company will only be able to put the full range back on the rails on Saturday. In view of Weselsky’s announcements, the great uncertainty only begins after the strike ends. There is currently no solution in sight to the tariff dispute.

That’s the crux of the matter

The crux of the negotiations is the GDL’s demand for a reduction in weekly working hours from 38 to 35 hours for shift workers without financial losses. Weselsky even rejected a suggestion from external mediators who had brought up a reduction to 36 hours with full wage compensation.

At AUA parent Lufthansa, the current industrial dispute will run until Saturday morning. There is also no compromise in sight in the tariff dispute. Verdi is demanding, among other things, 12.5 percent more salary, but at least 500 euros per month for a term of twelve months. The next negotiations are scheduled for March 13th and 14th. Passengers must also expect strikes from another professional group in the near future. A few weeks before the start of the Easter holidays, the flight attendants of Lufthansa and its regional subsidiary Lufthansa Cityline voted for strikes in a strike vote by the UFO union on Wednesday. It remained unclear at the moment when strikes could be expected.