A rail strike is not only a nuisance, but also costs millions of euros. In addition to damage to the individual, a day of industrial action also puts a strain on supply chains and logistics. Is it all worth it?
The train drivers are on strike – again. Their current demand: the reduction of weekly working hours for shift workers from 38 to 35 hours with full wage compensation. Deutsche Bahn could not agree to this. After four weeks of searching for a compromise, the negotiations failed and GDL boss Claus Weselsky announced the next 35-hour strike.
Of course, this is always at least one annoyance for train passengers: you are late for an appointment, in the worst case the train is completely canceled – and you are stranded at one of the ugly German train stations. Apart from this emotional suffering, a day of strike also causes quantifiable costs for the national economy.
Rail strike causes millions in damages
The employer-related Institute of the German Economy (IW) in Cologne estimates that a one-day nationwide rail strike costs around 100 million euros. However, if a strike lasts several days, the costs would no longer increase linearly, but would sometimes multiply.
Michael Grömling, head of economic activity at IW Cologne, explains this using the example of the longest rail strike to date at the end of January: “A six-day strike is not twice as much as a three-day strike.” The costs, the problems in companies and the problems for individual German citizens rose disproportionately. “And so at the end of the day we shouldn’t be surprised if economic damage can build up over a longer period of time,” said Grömling.
You can quickly reach a billion euros worth of damage, says Grömling. A strike “puts sand in the gearbox of an engine that isn’t running smoothly anyway. And all of us know that we currently have a number of stresses on our hands. And we actually don’t need this in addition,” says Grömling.
Who benefits from the strikes
In fact, a rail strike can not only be an advantage for train drivers: if the train doesn’t run, companies that compete with Deutsche Bahn also benefit: airlines, car rental companies and bus operators see higher demand whenever there is a strike.
For example, according to a spokesman, Eurowings recorded its highest bookings in more than four years during the major strike at the end of January. The company FlixBus, which also has a direct rail competitor with FlixTrain, reported something similar.
Source: Stern
