Members of a union representing German train drivers vote for open-ended strikes in bitter dispute

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Members of a union representing German train drivers have voted overwhelmingly to stage open-ended strikes in a bitter dispute with the main national railway operator over working hours and pay

BERLIN — Members of a union representing German train drivers have voted overwhelmingly to stage open-ended strikes in a bitter dispute with the main national railway operator over working hours and pay, union leaders said Tuesday.

The GDL union said that 97% of members who voted in a ballot authorized fully fledged strikes at state-owned Deutsche Bahn, easily beating the 75% approval required. It said that turnout was more than 70%.

GDL already has staged two one-day “warning strikes," a common tactic in German wage negotiations. But this dispute has escalated unusually fast. GDL's chairman, Claus Weselsky, declared last month that negotiations with Deutsche Bahn had failed after only two rounds of talks.

Weselsky has said there will be no strikes before Jan. 8. He left open when and for how long members will strike after that.

“What is coming now will be more powerful, longer and harder for customers” than the walkouts so far, he said.

The central issue is the union’s call for shift workers’ hours to be reduced from 38 to 35 hours per week without a pay reduction, a demand at which employers so far have balked.

GDL argues that it would make working for the railway more attractive and help attract new recruits, while Deutsche Bahn says the demand can't practically be fulfilled.

GDL is seeking a raise of 555 euros ($605) per month for employees plus a one-time payment of up to 3,000 euros to counter inflation. Deutsche Bahn has said that it made an offer that amounts to an 11% raise.

A dispute between Deutsche Bahn and a larger