Strikes hit German rail network

Strikes caused delays on Germany’s railway on Tuesday morning as unions limber up for confrontation over stalled wage negotations. They accuse private operators of undercutting state-owned Deutsche Bahn by paying lower wages.

Reuters

Both Deutsche Bahn and the six private rail companies were hit by warning strikes Tuesday, which ended at 11am local time.

Virtually no trains were running into Frankfurt, according to the unions, Transnet and GBDA, who way that lines around Cologne and Dusseldorf were also badly affected.

Deutsche Bahn’s international links were not disrupted.

The unions want one set of pay scales for both public and private operators but negotiations are at an impasse.

Private companies pay lower wages than Deutsche Bahn and unions believe that this allows them undercut the state operator when bidding for contracts for regional networks. They also accuse Deutsche Bahn of paying lower salaries on some of subsidiary companies.