Verdi, the service‑sector union, announced on Monday that it will call for strikes in municipal public transport on Thursday across several German states. The action will target Bayern, Saarland, Brandenburg, Nordrhein‑Westfalen and Hamburg, where the union expects the majority of local transit companies to cease operations entirely. Whether strikes will also occur in Hessen and Bremen remains to be decided.
This move marks Verdi’s third collective industrial action within the current nationwide tariff round, which is negotiating working conditions for almost 100,000 employees in 150 companies. Verdi’s vice‑chair Christine Behle said that in many states the negotiations are still at the beginning and that urgent solutions are needed. In Schleswig‑Holstein and Baden‑Württemberg, however, a tariff agreement has already been reached.
Verdi’s demands vary by state but generally include a reduction of the weekly working hour and shift length, as well as higher night‑shift and weekend‑shift allowances. The union’s objective is to ease employee burdens, curb high turnover rates within the transit companies, and safeguard public transport as an essential public service.
