Photo: SBB
Switzerland is not known for aggressive labor disputes – but it is known for innovative campaigns. Now, the 40,000-member transport workers' union (SEV) is campaigning for ÖBB train drivers on the Munich-Zurich Eurocity route to receive the same pay as their Swiss colleagues.
Now, an event "Against Dumping in Cross-Border Rail Transport" is planned for next Tuesday at St. Gallen train station. The arrival of the Eurocity train (at 7:28 p.m. on platform 1) from Munich, which has been running six times a day between Munich and Zurich since the beginning of the year, will be accompanied by a symbolic handover of the 20-franc wage difference to the ÖBB train driver, with as much media coverage as possible. The demonstration is being held under the banner of "equal pay for equal work in the same place.".
SEV is the largest and strongest trade union in Switzerland in the public transport sector and for tourist railways. Its members are drawn from staff in bus, rail, local transport, shipping, tourist railways and air transport.
The background is the deployment of locomotive personnel from the Austrian Federal Railways (ÖBB) on the Eurocity trains Munich–Zurich – including in Switzerland between Lindau (D) and St. Gallen – since last December.
According to the union, this solution makes sense from an operational perspective. However, to prevent wage dumping, the compensation of ÖBB locomotive staff for hours worked in Switzerland must be supplemented by an allowance to establish wage parity. Because this adjustment is not currently in place, a wage dumping situation exists that distorts competition and disadvantages Swiss locomotive staff.
Photo: DB
SEV and vida are drawing attention to this injustice with their joint action. To demand equal pay, they will symbolically hand over the wage difference of approximately 20 Swiss francs per hour for working in Switzerland and Austria to an ÖBB train driver at 7:28 p.m. in St. Gallen train station.
Since April 11th, travel on this route has been made more attractive. The Eurocity train now runs six times a day in each direction, completing the journey from Munich via Lindau-Reutin to Zurich and back in just three and a half hours – almost every two hours. This makes day trips with a nine-hour layover in Zurich possible for travelers from Munich or the Allgäu region. The fast, direct connections depart Munich daily at 6:55, 8:55, 12:55, 14:55, 16:52, and 18:52, and Zurich at 7:33, 9:33, 11:33, 13:33, 17:33, and 19:33. Intermediate stops include Buchloe, Memmingen, Lindau-Reutin, Bregenz, St. Margrethen,
St. Gallen, Winterthur, and Zurich Airport. The almost continuous two-hourly service between the Bavarian capital and the economic metropolis of Zurich offers a comfortable and climate-friendly alternative to air and private transport.
The Swiss high-speed trains used on this route offer ICE-level comfort with Wi-Fi, on-board catering, and four bicycle spaces. This fast long-distance connection between the two cities is a collaboration between Deutsche Bahn (DB), Austrian Federal Railways (ÖBB), and Swiss Federal Railways (SBB).
Following the successful electrification of the Allgäu Railway, the first direct trains started running last year, albeit with a longer journey time of around four hours. With the timetable change in December 2021, the first three trains per day and direction were able to offer the faster travel time. The reason for the staggered acceleration was the complex approval process for the new European Train Control System (ETCS) Baseline 3, with which the trains were retrofitted.
www.sev-online.ch
