The GDL train driver's union which boasts 8,000 members in Germany, organized a three hour strike from 8:00 to 11:00 am -- during the countries busy rush hour commute – causing railway delays and cancellations.
The dispute between Deutshe Bahn and GDL came to a head today, after the railway goliath rejected a proposed 31 percent wage increase, calling the request unrealistic.
Deutsche Bahn which manages freights both nationwide and throughout Europe, holds a major claim on the countries large-scale railway system. Ten Million people use the train everyday in Germany, 5 million passengers on Deutsch Bahn carriers.
Deutsche Bahn yesterday filed a lawsuit against the GDL hoping to shut strikers down. The labor court in Chemnitz, Germany issued a temporary injunction ruling that, due to economic concerns, strikers could boycott local rail services but not long-distance routes and freight trains.
Yet the railway strike had a real effect. In Germany's industrial district many commuters, wise to the strike, sought out other modes of transportation. Some Deutsche Bahn operated trains -- in Essen and Dortmund for example -- were reported almost empty in the strikes early hours.
In other areas, Deutsche Bahn's contingency plans kept trains running though less regularly. The plans aimed to keep half of the country's 19,000 regional trains operational.
The company additionally arranged 1,000 train drivers from Switzerland and Austria as backup and bolstered its staff to provide guidance for agitated customers. Some of Deutsche Bahn's train drivers, not part of the GDL union, continued their regular routes.
The dispute between Deutsche Bahn and the train drivers union has been going for months. The company will offer only 10 of the 31 percent requested wage increase, suggesting lasting friction.
In a Der Spiegel magazine interview, Transportation Minister Wolfgang Tiefensee warned that a drawn-out strike could have "disastrous consequences" for Germany's economic development.
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