EVG: threat of strike suspended for the time being – talks with the railways earlier this week
7:41 p.m.: The railway and transport union (EVG) has suspended its threat to strike for the time being. The Deutsche Bahn have agreed to talks in small groups at the beginning of next week, a union spokesman told the AFP news agency on Friday. Until then there will be no strikes, but the preparations for a possible labor dispute “are continuing”.
The EVG had announced further warning strikes on Wednesday without initially naming a date. She named next Monday as the earliest possible date. On Thursday evening, according to her own statements, she then sent a short-term invitation to talks to the railway’s negotiators, which, according to the EVG spokesman, accepted.
The railway had initially rejected further negotiations and the submission of a new offer, citing the attitude of the union. The EVG stubbornly insists on its original requirements and is not willing to compromise, said HR Director Martin Seiler. Negotiations are “pointless”.
The union spokesman rejected this representation. It was completely clear that the initial demand in the collective bargaining would not ultimately correspond to the result. But more movement is needed in terms of salary, especially for those on lower incomes.
The EVG has so far demanded twelve percent more wages for all employees and at least 650 euros more for a twelve-month term. The lower income groups would benefit from such a minimum increase. The railway has so far offered a purely percentage increase of twelve percent for lower, ten percent for middle and eight percent for higher incomes as well as a tax-free inflation adjustment of a total of 2850 euros.
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The EVG is also particularly upset by the offered term of 24 months in the Deutsche Bahn offer. She insists on a term of twelve months.
Warning strikes in Bavarian retail continue
06.40 a.m.: The Verdi services union has again called for warning strikes in Bavarian retail this Friday. Employees of H&M in Augsburg, Donauwörth, Erlangen, Munich, Nuremberg and Rosenheim, of Kaufland in Erding, Geretsried, Moosburg and Munich, of Lidl in Bamberg, Massimo Dutti in Munich, Media Markt in Rosenheim and individual Rewe branches in Munich are called upon .
According to Verdi, there are also the Rewe central warehouses in Buttenheim and Eitting as well as Zara in Munich. Individual companies have been on strike for several days, the union said.
Collective bargaining in the Bavarian retail trade will continue on June 13th, in Bavarian wholesale and foreign trade on June 16th. Verdi calls for, among other things, 2.50 euros more per hour for retail and mail order and an increase of 13 percent for wholesale and foreign trade.
Strikes hamper air traffic in France on Tuesday
Friday, June 02, 2023 at 06:37: Strikes against the long-decided pension reform in France lead to restrictions in air traffic on Tuesday. The Civil Aviation Authority announced on Thursday that it ordered airlines to reduce their take-offs and landings at Paris Orly Airport by a third. Air traffic is to be reduced by 20 percent at the airports in Lyon, Marseille, Nice, Toulouse, Bordeaux and Nantes.
The retirement age in France will gradually increase from 62 to 64 years. Against the reform, which came into force in mid-April and will take effect from September, there may be protests and strikes for the last time on Tuesday. Air traffic controllers also want to go on strike that day.
No more strikes to be expected in the University Medicine Mainz
Thursday, June 1, 07:20: During the collective bargaining at the University Medical Center in Mainz, there was an agreement on Wednesday. “Further strikes are therefore not planned,” said a spokesman for the Verdi union. A result was achieved that the Verdi members could now vote on by the end of June. “Our collective bargaining committee recommends accepting the result,” said the spokesman. More than 7000 non-medical employees of the university medicine are affected by the negotiations.
New in the package is an inflation compensation premium for this year in the amount of 3000 euros net, which is to be paid out in two tranches. In addition, it is planned to increase wages by 200 euros plus two percent per month from January 1, 2024. From August 1, 2024 there should be another four percent more, said the Verdi spokesman. “We are pleased that we were able to reach a good result at the negotiating table.”
Before the negotiations on Wednesday, further possible strikes had been in the room. At the beginning of May, the non-medical employees of the largest hospital in Rhineland-Palatinate went on a warning strike lasting several days. Negotiations began on March 22nd.
Bahn rejects further negotiations with EVG for the time being
Wednesday, May 31, 4:49 am: After the rejection of Deutsche Bahn’s latest offer by the railway and transport union (EVG), the company initially rejected further collective bargaining. “It’s pointless at the moment because the ECG doesn’t move a millimeter,” explained DB HR Director Martin Seiler on Wednesday night. The flat-rate rejection of the third, again greatly improved DB offer by the EVG is “incomprehensible”.
The EVG does not show any concessions and does not propose any solutions, but “simply stubbornly insists on its initial demands”, criticized Seiler. The railway now wants to comprehensively assess the overall situation and discuss further steps in the responsible committees, he announced.
The chief negotiator of the EVG, Kristian Loroch, declared on Tuesday evening that essential points of the union demands were “still not fulfilled”. He called on the railways “urgently” to “realign their offer immediately” and “to negotiate further with us immediately”. This is possible from Wednesday.
Negotiations should be in the interest of the railways, “because as long as we sit at the negotiating table, there will be no strikes,” emphasized Loroch on Tuesday. The EVG had already twice called for a strike in the ongoing collective bargaining dispute. She then called for a 50-hour warning strike for mid-May. After a settlement with the railways was reached before the labor court in Frankfurt am Main, she suspended the walkout for the time being and both sides entered into negotiations again.
The railways had presented a new offer on Thursday, which provides for wage increases of up to twelve percent, which should start this year.
Seiler accused the EVG of “putting everyone in a difficult position with the rejection”. “For the time being, the employees are not getting the wage increase they are urgently waiting for. And the travelers and the company have to continue to deal with a completely unresolved situation.” DB has already submitted three offers, twice pushed hard on them and kept moving towards EVG, he explained.
Collective bargaining dispute: EVG rejects Deutsche Bahn’s latest offer as “insufficient”.
10:46 p.m.: The EVG union has rejected Deutsche Bahn’s latest offer in the collective bargaining dispute as “insufficient”, but wants to continue negotiations. “Essential points of our demands have still not been met. DB AG is urgently requested to realign its offer immediately, ”said the negotiator of the railway and transport union (EVG), Kristian Loroch, on Tuesday evening. He called on Deutsche Bahn to “negotiate with us immediately”. This is possible from Wednesday.
“What is currently on the table is socially unfair,” explained Loroch. The planned percentage scale disadvantages “particularly the lower wage groups, for which we want to get significantly more out this time”. The railways had presented a new offer on Thursday, which provides for wage increases of up to twelve percent, which should start this year.
Negotiations should be in the interest of the railways, “because as long as we sit at the negotiating table, there will be no strikes,” emphasized Loroch on Tuesday. The EVG had already twice called for a strike in the ongoing collective bargaining dispute. She then called for a 50-hour warning strike for mid-May. After a settlement with the railways was reached before the labor court in Frankfurt am Main, she suspended the walkout for the time being and both sides entered into negotiations again.
Warning strikes in retail in East Westphalia again on Tuesday and Wednesday
Tuesday, May 30, 7:30 a.m.: After a nationwide warning strike in mid-May, the Verdi union once again called on workers in retail, wholesale and foreign trade to walk out. Next Tuesday and Wednesday they want to go on strike in Ostwestfalen-Lippe for better pay and working conditions. Employees in branches of Primark, H&M, Kaufland, Ikea, Smyth Toys and Marktkauf, Schüco, Phoenix, Leitz, Noweda and Edeka Foodservice are called upon to do so.
The results of the previous rounds of negotiations were not satisfactory, the union said in a statement on Saturday. The willingness to go on strike is therefore very high, as Ursula Jacob-Reisinger said as trade union secretary for trade in OWL.
In the 2023 collective bargaining round in retail in North Rhine-Westphalia, Verdi is demanding 2.50 euros more salary and wages per hour. Training allowances are to be increased by 250 euros. Negotiations will continue on June 12 in Recklinghausen.
In wholesale and foreign trade in North Rhine-Westphalia, Verdi wants an increase in fees of 13 percent, but at least 400 euros. Training allowances are also to be increased by 250 euros. Negotiations will continue here on June 13, 2023.
Retail workers are walking down again
Saturday, May 27, 5:14 p.m.: One day after the warning strikes in retail in Rhineland-Palatinate and Saarland, employees went back to work on Saturday. The Verdi union had previously called for warning strikes again. Around 300 people took part in the warning strike in both countries, as Verdi coordinator Monika Di Silvestre said. Of these, around 200 employees were at the strike rally in Kaiserslautern in the morning. The branches of Galeria, Ikea, H&M, Kaufland, Hornbach and Primark are affected by the warning strikes.
According to Verdi, 150 to 200 employees stopped work on Friday. “Colleagues are striking again today so that employers can finally move and realize that their situation is serious,” said Di Silvestre. The employees are urgently dependent on a sustainable wage increase in order to be able to pay the daily living expenses.
The background is the current collective bargaining for the retail and mail order trade in Rhineland-Palatinate. According to Di Silvestre, around 150,000 employees in Rhineland-Palatinate are affected. Verdi is demanding 2.50 euros more per hour worked, a term for the collective agreements of twelve months and the introduction of generally binding collective agreements in retail and mail order. In addition, trainee remuneration should increase by EUR 250 per year of training.
The trade association proposed a two-stage offer over two years. In the first year there should be a tariff increase of three percent, in the second year by two percent.
The first round of collective bargaining took place at the beginning of May. Further talks are to take place next Tuesday, May 30th.
More information on the warning strikes on the following pages.
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