German union calls on postal bank employees to go on strike again

The German trade union verdi is keeping up the pressure with further strikes ahead of the third round of collective bargaining for the postal bank, Postbank, verdi announced on Thursday.

Employees in branches and call centres across Germany are once again being called out on strike for Friday and Saturday, verdi said.

"We expect a significantly improved offer from the employers in the next round of negotiations," verdi negotiator Jan Duscheck said. The negotiations are to continue on Monday in the city of Frankfurt.

Verdi is demanding 15.5% more money for around 12,000 employees in the Deutsche Bank Group, the parent company, with a Postbank collective agreement, but at least a salary increase of €600 ($656).

The Deutsche Bank Employees' Association (DBV) wants 14.5% more money for employees at Postbank, Postbank Filialvertrieb, PCC Services and BCB.

Due to planned branch closures, verdi is also pressing for long-term job security by extending the protection against dismissal until December 31, 2028.

Deutsche Bank plans to close up to 250 of the 550 Postbank branches by mid-2026, including staff cuts.

Shortly before Christmas, Deutsche Bank pledged to refrain from compulsory redundancies for employees covered by collective agreements at its retail bank in Germany until the end of September of the current year.

According to verdi, in the second round of collective bargaining on February 26, the employer side offered a further extension of the protection against dismissal up to and including June 2026 with a total term of the agreement of 29 months, as well as an increase in salaries of 5% from June 2024 and a further 2% from July 1, 2025.