German train drivers, D.Bahn eye deal by end-Jan

(Agencies)
Updated: 2007-12-05 16:58

BERLIN - German rail operator Deutsche Bahn said on Tuesday it had reached a basic agreement with the GDL train drivers' union over their wage dispute and aimed to seal a final deal by the end of January.

Locomotive engine-driver union GDL leader Manfred Schell leaves his union headquarters in Frankfurt, November 21, 2007. [Agencies]

"We have offered a wage deal, the highest there's been in Germany in the past decade," Deutsche Bahn chief Hartmut Mehdorn told reporters at a joint news conference with GDL chief Manfred Schell.

Mehdorn said the two sides had agreed to continue negotiating towards a final deal which they aimed to wrap up by the end of January.

Schell, who has been very critical of Mehdorn and until recently was widely seen as the Deutsche Bahn chief's arch-nemesis, said his union would call off all strike actions while it holds official wage discussions with Deutsche Bahn.

"As long as we are in negotiations, we will not strike," Schell said.

The GDL union, which represents some 34,000 train drivers, has staged walkouts since July but agreed last week to re-enter negotiations with Deutsche Bahn, Germany's largest employer.

Transport Minister Wolfgang Tiefensee welcomed the news.

"This is a good sign for the staff and a good day for the company," he told Reuters after the announcement.

The main bone of contention has been GDL's insistence that it be granted a wage deal that is separate from the company's other workers. In its latest proposal, Deutsche Bahn offered the drivers an 8 percent increase which could rise to as much as 13 percent if they agree to work longer hours.

GDL's strikes had begun to cast a shadow over the economy. A 62-hour walkout last month idled freight traffic, caused problems for millions of rail passengers and caused industrial disruption.

Economist Holger Schmieding at Bank of America said the GDL-Deutsche Bahn saga may indicate a new trend - with Germany's economy improving it may be increasingly difficult for the country's unions to accept lower wage deals.

"It is a sign that, in general, the wage discipline in Germany is over," he said. "The economic situation has normalised, unemployment is falling quite sharply, so ... wage settlements are heading to what is usual outside of Germany."