Workers at the Deutsche Post subsidiary of the DHL logistics giant were set to stage a one-day strike for wage hikes. The firm cited high operating costs and called for “economically viable” increases.

German trade union Verdi on Tuesday said it was calling a one-day strike at the DHL courier giant.

The DHL group also operates the German postal service, known as Deutsche Post.

“In the second round of negotiations last week there was hardly any movement and no tangible negotiation results,” Verdi deputy chairperson Andrea Kocsis said.

“We mean [this] seriously,” she stressed. “We’re ready to fight for our demands.”

What are Verdi’s demands?

Verdi is demanding a 7% wage hike and additional days of paid leave for some 170,000 Deutsche Post employees.

Kocsis stressed the need for wage increases to cope with the high living costs, calling the firm’s position on pay hikes “unacceptable.”

Deutsche Post argued that costs in the industry were too high and called for “economically viable” salary increases.

The next round of talks is scheduled for 12-13 February.

Labor action comes amid rising cost of living

Verdi and other unions have in recent years increasingly called for strikes, citing the rising cost of living.

In August 2024, pilots and cabin crew at the Lufthansa subsidiary Discover Airlines staged a four-day strike.

In July, Germany’s ports of Hamburg and Bremen-Bremerhaven stopped work, with Verdi demanding pay increases.

Lufthansa struck a deal with Verdi earlier in 2024 after ground staff brought German airports to a standstill.

Germany’s economy has been reeling with the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, with economists registering substantial inflation and sluggish growth.