A juncture has been reached in the dispute between the German train drivers' union (GDL) and Deutsche Bahn management. 91% of the 27,000 GDL members employed by DB supported shifting from a warning strike to an all-out and indefinite strike. The vote results were announced Thursday, 2 October. Beyond demands for pay increases and collective claims, the clash pitting the small trade union against DB particularly centers around calls by GDL to negotiate collective bargaining agreements for staff besides drivers, who are currently represented by the major railway trade union EVG. The standoff between a small-scale, profession-based trade union and a sizable generalist organization is, incidentally, mirrored by events transpiring at the airline Lufthansa, where the German pilots' union, Cockpit, is currently asserting its own claims. Employers await with baited breath the law to be adopted in fall re-introducing the doctrine "One company, one trade union, one collective bargaining agreement," while trade unionists are deeply split over a plan that will heavily affect German co-determination (Mitbestimmung).
A strike to enhance GDL’s sway as a trade union? The train drivers’ union leadership has received the go-ahead of 91% of its members to launch a full-scale strike at any time and for any duration. In order for this to happen, the law calls for a 75% qualified majority. GDL management has yet to release any details as to when it shall kick off its strike. “We are prepared to see this through,” warned GDL’s president, Klaus Weselsky, in the morning. In 2007, GDL already displayed its tenacity in
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