Massive strike in German public transport/Strike in many parts of Finland

According to the report of the international group Tasnim news agency, citing Germany’s “NTV”, buses Trams and subways will not run in more than 80 German cities this Friday. In its struggle for better working conditions in local transport, the Verdi union has announced a massive strike. will be felt by train drivers and farmers after the strike. Local public transport employees stopped working. Buses, subways and trams across the country remain in parking lots and, as has often been the case recently, the strikes are no longer just about money, but about basic working conditions in an increasingly aging country. It faces a shortage of workers in sectors that are critical to its survival.

The union, We Ride Together, is now represented in several cities by more than 60 local groups. There, bus and train drivers, as well as other employees of transportation companies, along with young climate activists, are on strike for better working conditions. According to the Verdi union, the current round of collective negotiations of more than 100 municipal companies in cities and regions affects Working conditions are being renegotiated in 15 federal states and with two transport companies in Hamburg. In Brandenburg, Saarland, Saxony-Anhalt and Thuringia, employees are demanding higher wages. From the employees’ point of view, the argument for better working conditions is made by the employers themselves: according to the Association of German Transport Companies (VDV), 80,000 employees will retire by 2030. In addition, there is a high level of illness due to high work and high average age. According to VDV estimates, 110,000 new employees in driving, technology and management services will be needed by 2030 to meet climate targets.

Given this situation, Friday’s strike may be the first. Among several things: employers simply find themselves in no position to respond to demands for significant reductions in workload or, as in Brandenburg’s case, a 20 percent wage increase. Similar to Deutsche Bahn in the GDL strike, employers argue that longer rest periods, shorter weekly hours, more compensatory rest for night shifts or more days off will leave a bigger hole in staffing levels. Then the entire connections are broken forever.

Thus, after the airports, the Verdi union has called a strike on local public transport in Germany. Travelers and students in particular should prepare for significant restrictions in many cities. Local transport is affected in more than 80 cities and around 40 regions.

The warning strike is likely to have a severe impact in Germany’s most populous federal state of North Rhine-Westphalia. About a third of the 90,000 employees are based in North Rhine-Westphalia, according to Verdi. But restrictions will be felt in many other areas, especially in larger cities.

Yesterday, the Verdi union had largely stopped air traffic in Germany. The union called for all-day warning strikes at 11 airports in tariff disputes for aviation security. Just a few days before that, a multi-day strike by the German Locomotive Drivers’ Union (GDL) was held at Deutsche Bahn for several days. This led to widespread disruption of long-distance and regional rail transport.

The Verdi union demanded, among other things, shorter working hours without financial loss, longer rest periods between shifts, more holidays or pay. It’s more of a vacation. This is to reduce the burden on employees and make work more attractive.

The warning strike is supported by the environmental movement Fridays for the Future (FFF) with regional actions and rallies. For this organization, better working conditions are a prerequisite to make public transport more attractive as an alternative to cars.

The Verdi union has called on about 90,000 employees from more than 130 municipal companies in cities and regions to strike. This nationwide strike in German local transport has started early today (Friday).

Andreas Schackert, leader of the federal specialist group for buses and trains in Verdi, said: “As a As a rule, there is a strike from the beginning of the operation until the end of the operation – usually from three to three in the morning on a Saturday.

A general strike in Finland to protest the government’s austerity policies

In Finland, employees of kindergartens, airports and factories are also on strike. Tens of thousands of workers went on strike in Finland. Their protest is against the Finnish government’s austerity measures. In this way, this country has turbulent weeks ahead.

In Finland, due to the increase in expenses, the government has taken austerity measures and this issue has caused problems in the country for months. “If you get sick, you shouldn’t get paid on the first day. We work with small children, there are a lot of illnesses, it’s unimaginable for us,” says Johanna Karlsson, a kindergarten teacher and spokeswoman for the union.

The strike is almost like a general strike and started slowly on Wednesday when the kindergartens were closed. It was also taken to the airports yesterday. Strikes affect schools, supermarkets, hotels, as well as industry. Public transportation will be added at the end of the week. Tens of thousands of people are expected to quit their jobs.

According to Jarko Eloranta of the SAK trade union federation of Finland, the government’s reform package contains

end of message/