牽手和分手來自同一雙手

German train drivers have staged brief walkouts in two cities in an escalation of their pay dispute with state operator Deutsche Bahn. 


Drivers from the GDL union stopped work for two hours in Berlin and Hamburg, affecting commuter services.

Deutsche Bahn has secured an injunction against strikes on commuter services outside Berlin and Hamburg as well as long-distance and freight services. 

However, GDL said it would not hold any further strikes until it had concluded the first round of talks with Deutsche Bahn.

GDL and Deutsche Bahn have agreed to use mediators to try and find a solution that would avoid continuing industrial action.

"We will not call further strikes now. That would be counterproductive in this situation," a GDL spokesman said.

'Clear signal' 

Wednesday's court ruling, blocking strike action on the grounds of the economic damage it would cause, did not cover regional services in Berlin and Hamburg.

GDL says its members are paid 1,500 euros (£1,015) a month and should benefit more from the recovery of the German economy, which has boosted freight and passenger traffic. 

Deutsche Bahn has agreed a pay deal with two other unions which will see workers receive a 4.5% rise in wages. 

Privatisation plan  

Deutsche Bahn, which carries more than five million passengers a day, has said it hopes to restart negotiations as soon as possible.

Business groups have said repeated strikes could cause "immense" damage to the economy at the height of the holiday season.

However, one analyst said the likely impact on productivity would be limited since the railways only carried a fraction of the amount of freight transported by road. 

Prolonged strike action could also threaten plans to part-privatise Deutsche Bahn next year. 

Unions have expressed concerns at the plan, approved by ministers last month, to sell off a stake of up to 25% to private investors. 

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看到這則新聞，心裡又對歐洲人民多了一份欽佩之意。

鐵路在歐洲可說是經濟成長上不可或缺的一個網絡，尤其是在觀光的收入上，應該佔有一定的比例。DB賺了那麼多，居然也不調薪，難怪國營事業總是被罵到臭頭。然而，台灣與歐洲不同之處在於，台灣人民的民族性實在太溫馴了，沒那個勇氣去罷工，否則，軍公教的調薪計畫也不至於中途活生生被中斷吧! 真是苦了大家...

畢竟歐洲的民主之路也是由許多前人的鮮血和汗水所構築而成的，絕非只是用單純的口號或政策就可以完成的。什麼是民主? 總認為有時候台灣人們似乎把它給忽視或是濫用了。