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German rail operator Deutsche Bahn and transport union EVG have agreed to return to the negotiating table for five-day talks in another attempt to solve an ongoing pay dispute.
Representatives of both sides plan to discuss possible tariff increases for some 180,000 employees from 2 pm (1200 GMT) on Monday up to and including Friday, Deutsche Bahn announced on Friday.
The last round of negotiations lasted three days. The course of the talks in the coming week will ultimately determine whether there will be new rail strikes in the near future.
Since February, there have been several nation-wide rail strikes, though the most recent one in mid-May was called off.
The EVG has been negotiating with Deutsche Bahn and 50 other companies in the sector about wages and salaries for a total of about 230,000 employees. The focus is on the negotiations with state-owned Deutsche Bahn, which employs about 180,000 of these workers.
The EVG is demanding a fixed increase of at least €650 ($699) per month, or 12% in the higher paid groups, with the guarantee of renegotiations after one year. The union has completely rejected one-off payments.
During negotiations in May, Deutsche Bahn put forward a 12% increase in stages for the lowest paid employees, with 10% for those in the middle group and 8% for higher paid employees, to be paid over 24 months. The first part of the increase would be paid this year.
In addition, an inflation premium of €2,850, which would not be subject to tax or other deductions, would be paid in two stages from July.
The EVG rejected this offer, bringing negotiations to a halt.
