Verdi Workers to Permanently Strike on Friday to Halt BSAG's Operations in Bremen
Get Braced for Public Transportation Chaos in Bremen!
Brace yourself, Bremen residents! From 3:00 AM on Friday, February 21 to 3:00 AM on Saturday, February 22, get ready for a full-blown strike by the service union ver.di in six federal states, including Bremen. Public transportation will come to a grinding halt, causing significant inconvenience.
Bremen Streetcar AG (BSAG), a company with over 2,300 staff members, provides mobility for both locals and commuters using approximately 380 vehicles. With around 270,000 daily commuters, a complete shutdown of buses and trains during this period is highly anticipated as part of a coordinated action.
Strike Rooted in Unresolved Wage Disputes
This disruption is a result of ver.di's push to emphasize its demands in the ongoing wage negotiations between the federal government and municipalities. Previous negotiations, involving over 2.5 million public sector employees, have yielded no progress or agreement, with the next round occurring from March 14 to 16 in Potsdam.
ver.di is demanding an eight percent wage increase or a minimum monthly increase of 350 euros, alongside work relief. The union claims that increased workloads, despite political promises to expand public transportation and shorten waiting times, lead to exhaustion among staff, low wages, and high sickness rates.
Unforeseeable Spanner in the Works: Legal Hurdles
A replacement timetable isn't legally possible due to unpredictable participation in the strike by employees, including drivers and staff in the control center responsible for operational safety. Over 500 positions would need to be filled temporarily, which isn't feasible from a legal perspective.
Munich Sows Unease: No Grand Demonstrations
In Munich, following the suspicious Islamist attack last Thursday on a ver.di demonstration, large events have been canceled, including Fasching parades. ver.di has decided not to hold any large demonstrations in response to this incident. Instead, public gatherings will be limited to the area near the BSAG headquarters in the Neustadt.
Security Measures in Place: Police Presence Ramped Up
There is a clear sense of fear among ver.di members about potential attacks. ver.di Bremen has addressed these concerns during workplace visits and has been coordinating closely with the police in Bremen and Lower Saxony to ensure safety during the strikes. Increased police presence will be noticeable during demonstrations.
Despite challenges and apprehension, ver.di's persistent call for fair wages and work-life balance serves as a reminder of the complex negotiations between trade unions and governing bodies in Germany.
- The full-blown strike by ver.di in six federal states, including Bremen, could disrupt the transportation industry, causing chaos for the city's 270,000 daily commuters who rely on Bremen Streetcar AG (BSAG) for their journeys.
- The wage disputes between ver.di and the federal government have been ongoing, extending to policy-and-legislation discussions involving millions of public sector employees and affecting key aspects of finance and business.
- Career-oriented individuals in the public-transit sector may find themselves unexpectedly affected by the strike, with careers potentially impacted by the transportation chaos in Bremen.
- Politics has been thrust into the spotlight as the aftermath of the suspicious Islamist attack in Munich has forced ver.di to reconsider their demonstration plans, contributing to unease and general-news discussions around security measures.
- Amidst the challenges, attention remains focused on the contentious issue of fair wages and work-life balance in the industry, revealing the complexity of negotiations between trade unions and governing bodies within Germany's broader economic landscape.