Deutsche Bahn and the train drivers' union GDL have reached a wage agreement, delivering a five percent salary increase over two years, a one-off payment of €700, and notable improvements to allowances. Crucially, it is the first GDL wage round at Deutsche Bahn in many years to conclude without strikes.
The agreement delivers a linear salary increase of five percent spread across two stages. Wages for Deutsche Bahn employees covered by GDL collective agreements will rise by 2.5 percent on 1 August this year, followed by a further 2.5 percent increase on 1 August 2027. In addition to the staged salary rises, employees will receive a one-off payment of €700 and "noticeable improvements" to allowances, including for certain shift work arrangements.
The deal also introduces a new eighth pay grade for employees with more than 35 years of professional experience, creating further individual salary increases on top of the across-the-board rise.
The new collective agreement runs retrospectively from 1 January 2026 and expires on 31 December 2027. The two sides have already agreed on a peace obligation, meaning no strikes, through to the end of March 2028, covering the subsequent negotiation phase that will follow once the current agreement expires.
The agreement also addresses the ongoing competition between the GDL and Germany's larger railway union, the EVG. Deutsche Bahn and the GDL agreed on a "joint handling" of the Trade Union Unity Act, which governs which union holds negotiating rights in any given workplace. As part of this arrangement, a notarial counting procedure for union members across individual Deutsche Bahn operations will be introduced. The process is designed to determine which union, GDL or EVG, holds responsibility in each specific operation.
DB Human Resources Director Martin Seiler described the outcome as "a fair and viable result." He acknowledged that negotiations had been "intensive" towards the end, but added that talks had "always remained constructive and factual." As a result, "we were able to reach an agreement without strikes for the first time in years," he said. The GDL stated that the wage agreement strengthens "the core railway operations and raises the material foundation of numerous professional groups to a new level."
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