German train drivers want intervention of govt in pay dispute

There is a call for the German government to intervene in a pay dispute disrupting the country’s railway network. After a strike yesterday, and with threats of more to come, the head of the main train drivers union said the government must step in and mediate.

Deutsche Bahn, which is owned by the state, has been locked in the dispute for months. Drivers went on strike for three hours yesterday, affecting both regional and local rail traffic. The union says its members are underpaid compared with their European counterparts. Deutsche Bahn says an offer to pay an extra two hours’ work per week will result in bottom-line salary increases of up to 10 percent.

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