BERLIN (AP) — German train drivers will stage a three-day strike later this week, hitting both passenger and freight services as they try to increase the pressure on the national railway in a bitter pay dispute, their union said Tuesday.
The GDL union said that freight train drivers will walk off the job at midday Wednesday and that passenger train drivers will follow starting early Thursday.
The strike will end early Saturday, the union said.
The move marked an escalation by GDL after it staged a 42-hour strike against freight services last week, but left passenger trains running. Previously, it had staged several strikes against commuter trains.
GDL wants a hefty pay increase for train drivers and is insisting that they be given a pay deal separate from that given to other railway employees.
It has rejected a 4.5 percent raise that Deutsche Bahn agreed on with two other unions that represent a broader range of railway workers.
