- Content of the talks: Creating a framework for reducing working hours
- No result due to differing positions
- City-Bahn Managing Director: "We offered a 35-hour week - but not at the expense of our jobs!"
Chemnitz - The management of City-Bahn Chemnitz and the German Train Drivers' Union (GDL) met today for the first collective bargaining talks after 5 months of negotiation standstill. The meeting took place at the initiative of City-Bahn. The federal chairman of the GDL, Claus Weselsky, led the negotiations.
Since the beginning of this collective bargaining round, the core demand of the GDL has always been to introduce a 35-hour week with full pay compensation for shift work.
City-Bahn Managing Director Friedbert Straube: "Today I expressed my willingness to create the necessary framework conditions to implement the 35-hour week and still increase wages in line with the rate of inflation in the future. But the GDL continues to be stubborn. Despite the reduction in working hours, it wants to reserve the right to increase wages disproportionately. This is a considerable risk for transport services and jobs. As a result, the 35-hour week will remain unaffordable for the foreseeable future. And I am not prepared to jeopardise jobs at the City-Bahn because of this." Straube continues: "Mr Weselsky may not care about mobility in the region. But I don't. We can't expect our passengers to accept cancellations in the face of a turnaround in transport demanded by politicians!"
Mr Straube very much regrets that it was not possible to reach a workable compromise: "From our side, we did everything we could to achieve this: we calculated everything several times, agreed everything with the Supervisory Board and offered compromises time and time again. We have offered talks time and time again. But no chance! Nevertheless, I am still willing to talk."
City-Bahn is sticking to its goal of preventing further strikes and returning to stable and reliable transport operations as quickly as possible.
