Bus drivers employed by private companies in the German state of Hesse have been on strike since November 19. They are resisting scandalously low wages and exploitative working conditions. The drivers voted 99.5 percent for open-ended strike action in a strike ballot. The Verdi trade union is demanding a pay increase for the 4,400 drivers from the current €13.50 to €16.60 per hour. The bus operators’ last offer was a gradual wage increase to €15.60 over four years. Verdi has failed to take a firm stance on the time period for the wage increase. The trade union has been complicit in the attacks on wages and working conditions over the past 15 years, helping impose them on bus drivers.
— source wsws.org | 25 Nov 2019