On Tuesday, Deutsche Bahn, Germany’s national rail operator announced it has accepted the 35-hour work week demand of the GDL trade union, ending a punishing industrial dispute between the company and workers.

Deutsche Bahn said the work period is to be reduced from the current 38 hours to 35 hours, as demanded by GDL in several stages by 2029, with wages remaining the same.

However, employees who still want to work 38 hours per week or increase their working hours to 40 per week can do so.

According to the deal, the employee would receive a 2.7 per cent increase in pay per hour.

The agreement states that further optional reductions to 36 hours, 35.5 hours, and 35 hours would be possible from 2027 to 2029.

However, employees must register with their employers if they wish to take part in the reduced hours.

This is a major concession by Deutsche Bahn, which had proposed a 36-hour work week, but the union stuck to its 35-hour demand and accompanied that with several strikes.

On Sunday, there were reports that both sides had reached an agreement after months of a bitter dispute.

In separate news conferences, both sides were expected to release further details on Tuesday.

(dpa/NAN)