European Railroad Discussion > German Strike Again

Well, the're at it again. German train strike scheduled for Wednesday. With no end date this time. There were just out a few weeks ago for 5 days. Why is the German government allowing this to happen? Order them back to work or get rid of them all. I'm booked on an ICE from Copenhagen to Hamburg next week. Who knows if it  will run? Cost for a "back up" fligfht on KLM is over $300 and a change fee for existing reservation. Not to mention a hotel that can only be canceled 24 hours prior. How nice to treat overseas guests in this maner, not to mention the disruption of thousands of daily commuters who depend on the trans much more than we do here even in the NEC. The drivers should be ashamed of their actions (and I'm not alone in this....my German friends feel exactly the same way). Chancellor Angella needs to step up and mediate this dispute. Aren't unions great? These people don't give a crap about anyone else. Just themselves. If they don't they are paid enough or don't like the working conditions, go find another job that pays more and is more suited to your lifestyle.

andersonb109, from your rantings, I can determine that you are an expert on what those strikes are all about. So, do you mind to explain the backgrounds of why the German drivers organized in the GDL are on strike again to the general public of this site? It's obvious from your wording that you know these reasons very well, so please share your knowledge with us!

E111
 



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 05/19/15 12:55 by E111.

I think your experience will be that the German trains during a strike run better than ours do without a strike.

You can expect about 1/3 of the longer distance services to operate during the strike, meaning your chances are about 1 in 3 that your planned service will run.

It's not like there's no service.

Specifically, you will want to consult the DSB website, as trains originating at CPH are operated with DSB crews.  Here's what their website says:

Tyskland19. maj - 22. maj

• Søg din rejse

Det tyske togpersonale har varslet strejke fra d. 20. maj og foreløbig til og med den 22. maj.Sådan kommer du til og fra Tyskland via Rødby F - Puttgarden:
I Danmark følger EuroCitytogene den normale køreplan. I Tyskland kører der Togbusser mellem Hamburg og Puttgarden / Nykøbing F i stedet for tog. Skal du til Tyskland skal du skifte til togbus i Nykøbing F.
Se køreplanen mellem København og Hamburg her

Sådan kommer du til og fra Tyskland via Flensburg grænse:
EuroCitytogene mellem Aarhus H og Hamburg / Berlin kører efter den normale køreplan i Danmark, men er aflyst i Tyskland.
Toget, som skulle være kørt fra Hamburg kl. 13.29 og fra Padborg kl. 15.49 er dog aflyst hele vejen til Aarhus.Hvordan kommer jeg videre i Tyskland?
Tog og tider i Tyskland kan ændre sig med kort varsel, så vi anbefaler, at du holder dig orienteret om dine videre forbindelser i Tyskland via Deutsche Bahns danske hjemmeside.InterCitytogene mellem København og Flensborg kører efter den normale plan.Rejseplanen.dk vil blive opdateret løbende.

Here's is an English translation, suggesting that CPH-Hamburg HBF trains using the Rodby ferry will operate normally in Denmark and will be met by a DB bus service at Puttgarden/Nykobing for the connection to Hamburg:

Germany 19. May-22. may the German crews have announced strike from d. 20. may and preliminary to and with the 22. may.
 
How to get to and from Germany via Rødby-Puttgarden: in Denmark follows such Eurocity trains to the normal timetable. In Germany rail replacement buses running between Hamburg and Puttgarden/Nykøbing F instead of trains. Are you going to Germany you should switch to togbus in Nykøbing f. View the roadmap between Copenhagen and Hamburg here how to get to and from Germany via Flensburg border: Eurocity trains between Aarhus H and Hamburg/Berlin runs after the normal operating level in Denmark, but is canceled in Germany.
The train, which was supposed to be run from Hamburg at. 13.29 and from Padborg kl. 15.49, however, cancelled all the way to Aarhus.

 
How do I get on in Germany?
Trains and sometimes in Germany may change at short notice, so we recommend that you keep you informed about your onward connections in Germany through Deutsche Bahn's Danish homepage.
 
Intercity trains are between Copenhagen and Flensborg running after the normal level.
 
Rejseplanen.dk will be updated on an ongoing basis.
 



Edited 4 time(s). Last edit at 05/19/15 13:31 by reindeerflame.

andersonb109 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
...
> alone in this....my German friends feel exactly
> the same way). Chancellor Angella needs to step up
> and mediate this dispute. Aren't unions great?
> These people don't give a crap about anyone else.
...

There will be a new federal law in force 01.July 2015. I think DB will sit out this time and let run this tiny GDL run against the wall.
May be I´m wrong, we will see.

I´m riding i to 3 times weekly from Salzburg to Munich and retour. The EC/IC trains will not run, but the 2 hourly Raijets Budapest/Vienna - Munich will and the hourly private locals "Metronom" too so I have 3 trains all 2 hours.

But Muenchen Hbf is very quiet.

Erwin from Austria



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 05/19/15 15:19 by spandfecerwin.

---

Having been through strikes here in the US I would like to know what the drivers are striking over before condemning them just because of your selfish attitude over your scheduled trip. I have seen what corporations offered here in place of a union negotiated contract and believe me you wouldn't work under those conditions as well. Let's find out what they are attempting to accomplish by striking. No one likes the strikes, which includes those on the picket lines not earning any wages.

Bob Krieger
Cheyenne, WY

Guys, andersonB109 has made it very clear in many, many of his past posts that he does not like unions and very rarely misses an opportunity to remind us of his opinions about unions.
In other words, same rant - different day...

Pleeeease can we move on, without wishing to stifle anybody's freedom of speech I didn't think this was a forum for pro or anti Trade Union rantings, although I can understand andersonbob's annoyance at his travel plans being put at risk.
Keith G, London, UK

Apologies to andersonb109 for getting your handle wrong

PHall Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Guys, andersonB109 has made it very clear in many,
> many of his past posts that he does not like
> unions and very rarely misses an opportunity to
> remind us of his opinions about unions.
> In other words, same rant - different day...

Andersonb109 is quite vocal about his opinions, and not just on unions. His conservative commentary is a frequent addition to TO blogs, whether topic related or not.  I'm surprise he is spending money to travel to "socialist" Euorpe.

He's quite Leninist in his own little way but I'm sure he'll be pleased that the strike has now been called off. Clearly they had heard he was coming.



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 05/21/15 09:40 by 86235.

The strike is ending Thursday the 21st at 7pm CET. 

http://www.bbc.com/news/business-32823460

The strike ended last night and things should be back to normal by Saturday. Both sides agreed to binding mediation and a cooling-off period has been enacted that should prevent any further strikes until late June.

As to why the German government is "allowing" this to happen: because the right to industrial action is constitutionally enshrined and the entire point of it is the inconvenience it creates. Furthermore, due to the Railway Reform Act of 1994, DB is a private corporation (whose shares still happen to be owned by the government) and therefore is free to act in what it sees as being its best interests. Since striking is the workers' rights, the only course of action DB can take is either to capitulate to the union's demands (which are actually quite unreasonable in my opinion), to wait out the strike, or to lockout the union. The company has weighed its options and chosen the middle one. I thought you're in favor of private industry's autonomy from the government?