GERMANY: Rebel German rail union halts strike after rail operator Deutsche Bahn wins court injunction against the walkouts

A rebellious German train driver's union aborts its warning strikes that cause disruption across the country after rail operator Deutsche Bahn wins a court injunction against the walkouts. Even though rail operator Deutsche Bahn agreed to a pay deal with two other rail unions on Monday (July 9), the smaller GDL train drivers union staged strikes on Tuesday (July 10) from 8 a.m. They were set to last for three hours but were called off after about two hours after Deutsche Bahn won a court injuction. Manfred Schell, head of GDL, told reporters in Frankfurt on Tuesday morning that "we are not impressed at all" by the injunction. "We are confident that the court will rule in our favour in the next round which will prove that we are certainly capable of going on strike in order to push through our demands," Schell said. Deutsche Bahn called the GDL warning strikes illegal and won the court injunction from a labour court in Mainz. The union said they will not stage any further strikes before wage talks with Deutsche Bahn leaders, scheduled for Friday (July 13). The GDL train drivers union wants a separate deal and said it would not accept a 4.5 percent pay increase that two bigger unions -- Transnet and GDBA -- accepted on Monday. The GDL is demanding pay rises of up to 31 percent. The Transnet and GDBA unions represent 134,000 workers while the GDL said it has 20,000 members. Rail strikes are rare in Germany, with one of the world's most efficient rail networks.

ITN Source | July 11, 2007

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