Kaiserslautern in the warning strike: 1000 people demand fair wages!

Kaiserslautern in the warning strike: 1000 people demand fair wages!

On Wednesday, March 12, 2025, over 1000 people gathered on the abbey place in Kaiserslautern to take part in a warning strike from the Verdi union. The event took place in the context of current collective bargaining for the public service, in which the union negotiates with employers about wages. The participants came from various areas, including municipal administrations, the West Palatinate Clinic, regional savings banks as well as the cityscape and city drainage of Kaiserslautern. Verdi avoided a demonstration train due to the tragic events in Munich, where a car freaked out into a demo train and two people died. In memory of the victims, a minute's silence was held.

The union's claims are clear and include a wage increase of 8 percent or at least 350 euros more per month as well as three additional free days. Christine Behle, deputy Verdi Chairman, explained the critical situation of employees in local public transport, which suffer from a lack of personnel and increasing workload. This warning strike is part of a larger call to warning strikes that also affects local transport in several federal states. In the second tariff round, which on 17/18. February was not offered by the employer, which further fueled dissatisfaction among the employees.

background of the collective bargaining

The collective bargaining in the public service in which over 2.5 million employees are involved are under high pressure. The negotiations that take place among the negotiating parties of federal and municipal employers as well as the trade unions are trying to reach an agreement on the salaries in the collective agreement for the public service (TVöD). Those affected include not only employees in local transport, but also in administrations, daycare centers, schools and universities.

Despite the tense financial situation of the employers, they insist on a fair solution. So far, however, no offer has been made in the first and second round of negotiations, which increases the probability of larger warning strikes. This applies in particular to daycare centers, hospitals and airports, where high sick leave and frequent failures are observed that are due to the pressure from which the employees suffer.

claims and reactions

In addition to Verdi's claims already mentioned, there are also approaches from other unions such as the DBB that request higher surcharges for stressful jobs and flexible working time accounts for overtime. These comprehensive requirements are part of a serious attempt to improve working conditions in the public service and to secure long -term. The next negotiations are already scheduled for mid -March, although the result remains uncertain.

The current incidents and the upcoming collective bargaining illustrate the challenges that the public service faces and underline the need to take the concerns of the employees seriously. As the Rheinpfalz Play next weeks to increase the pressure on employers. The Press release from Verdi underlines the intention to conduct negotiations with a determined occurrence, during the Report from Tagesschau highlighted the political context that is shaped by the upcoming federal elections.