About 50,000 railway workers in Austria went on a one-day “warning strike” across the country on the grounds that they could not receive a salary increase as they wanted under the collective bargaining agreement.
Due to the high cost of living in the aftermath of the Russia-Ukraine war, a one-day strike was decided yesterday due to the disagreement between the railway workers and employers about the salary increase, while the negotiations on the collective bargaining agreement for the reorganization of salaries in many sectors in the country were ongoing.
As part of the strike, which started at night, national, regional and international train traffic throughout Austria was suspended for one day.
While the strike was felt seriously at the Central and Westbahnhof train stations in the capital Vienna, foreigners from different countries suffered.
While the VIDA Union, which represents the employees, demands an increase in the salaries of the workers by 400 Euros per month, the Austrian Chamber of Commerce, which participated in the meeting on behalf of the employers, finds this increase to be high and does not compromise on the 200 Euro increase and a one-time bonus of 1000 Euros, which it insisted from the beginning.
Representatives of the VIDA Syndicate stated that the increase offered by the employers was insufficient in the face of inflation, which reached 11 percent in the country, and therefore they went on strike.
Representatives of the Chamber of Commerce, on the other hand, stated that the union made an unrealistic demand, that it would be understandable if the strike was limited to a few hours, but that 24 hours was a very long time, and therefore described the action as “irresponsible”.
Meanwhile, a strike decision is expected in different sectors in the country. It is foreseen that sales personnel working in workplaces such as shops and markets will go on strike at the weekend.
