Winter service restricted and bridges raised
Verdi has called on road maintenance workers to go on warning strike on Thursday in the wage dispute in the public sector of the federal states. Lower Saxony and Bremen will be affected for 24 hours, as union spokesperson Tobias Morchner said on Wednesday. He refuted fears that the current weather could lead to widespread snow chaos on the roads.
However, it cannot be ruled out that smaller roads cannot be cleared as quickly as usual, said Morchner. The authority concerned also pointed out in advance that there would be restrictions in the winter road clearance service. Delays must be expected. According to the state authority for road construction and transport, there are around 1,200 employees at 56 road maintenance depots across the state.
However, the union itself referred to the Jan Berghaus Bridge in Leer and the Hunte Bridge near Oldenburg, both of which are to remain raised during the warning strike. However, emergency operations have been secured, said Verdi spokesperson Morchner. The union is expecting several hundred participants. In Hanover, a demonstration is to march to the Ministry of Economics and in Leer, a rally is planned at the Jan Berghaus Bridge.
The wage dispute concerns the salaries of around 1.1 million employees nationwide. Around 1.4 million civil servants, to whom the result is usually transferred, would also be affected. Verdi is demanding 10.5 percent more income for employees in the public sector of the federal states, but at least 500 euros more per month. Junior staff are to receive 200 euros more and trainees are to be taken on indefinitely.
In the second round of negotiations at the beginning of November, the Tarifgemeinschaft deutscher Länder made it clear that it considered the demands to be far too high and unaffordable. A third round of negotiations is planned for December 7.
Trade unions across Germany, including Verdi, are escalating their wage dispute, with road maintenance workers in Lower Saxony and Bremen planning strikes on Thursday. This could lead to trade disputes affecting tariffs on services related to winter road clearance, potentially affecting bridges like the Jan Berghaus Bridge in Leer and the Hunte Bridge near Oldenburg, which will remain raised during the strikes.
Source: www.dpa.com
