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German train drivers walk out

German train drivers have been conducting a series of one- and two-day strikes to force Deutsche Bahn, the German state-owned railroad company, to recognize their new union and give them a significant raise.

The drivers’ schedules vary from day to day. Their work week often stretches to 55 hours. Although they do skilled work and are responsible for keeping hundreds, if not thousands, of people safe, they make less than $2,200 a month. This salary is about 30 percent lower than the going wage in other European countries.

The most recent strike ended early on Nov. 17 after shutting down freight service for 62 hours and passenger transportation for 48 hours. It clogged the port of Hamburg and stopped production at some auto plants. Eastern Germany was more affected than the western part of the country. DB claimed the strike would cost it more than $700 million if it lasted a week.

Manfred Schell, head of the GDL, the union that organized the strikes, said he was “very happy” with the action and was expecting an offer from the company. On Nov. 18 the union issued a news release stating that if DB didn’t improve its offer, the workers would go out on an unlimited strike.