Train strikes called off as NS reaches tentative agreement with unions

Trade unions FNV, CNV and VVMC and the NS reached a collective labor agreement result early on Sunday morning. The unions will submit the agreement to their members and until then the announced strikes will be canceled, FNV Spoor reports and the NS confirms.

Negotiations for a new collective labor agreement for NS workers resumed on Saturday morning. With collective bargaining talks stalled, the unions made it clear that NS worker wages have not kept pace with inflation for years. They wanted that to be immediately corrected, also calling for a one-time payment of 600 euros.

After the first round of strikes, the NS offered a 5 percent raise retroactive to July 1, another 2.5 percent bump from Jan. 1 and a bonus of 650 euros. They also promised to come to an agreement about high inflation this year and moving forward, which the unions found to be too vague.

Several one-day strikes were carried out to enforce the unions' demands in recent weeks. On Friday, there were virtually no trains from the rail operator nationwide. Actions organized by trade unions FNV, CNV and VVMC made it almost impossible for the NS to set up a timetable with trains crossing the country, the transportation company said.

Several strikes were also planned for next week. On Sept. 13, these actions would have shut down the national railway in the north, south and east. A strike on Sept. 15 was planned in the central region.

The NS also scrapped nearly all trains during the one-day strike in Central Netherlands last month.