Railway Workers’ Union Demands Increased Security on Trains amid Rising Incidents of Violence
The Railway and Transport Union (EVG) is calling for increased police presence on trains and a more efficient prosecution of attacks on railway employees, as the number of incidents continues to rise. The union’s chairman, Martin Burkert, emphasized the need for the federal police to take their responsibilities seriously and maintain a visible presence in long-distance trains. He also urged for the establishment of special departments at state prosecutors’ offices to handle cases of violence against railway staff more swiftly.
The EVG is also reiterating its demand for the deployment of two train attendants in local transportation, requiring the federal states to provide additional financial resources for this purpose. Burkert pointed out that the increasing number of incidents is a “statistic of shame.”
According to a recent response from the Federal Ministry of the Interior to a parliamentary inquiry by the Left Party, the number of crimes committed against Deutsche Bahn employees, including physical assault, threatening behavior and bodily harm, has risen from 2,799 in 2022 to 3,151 in 2024. From January to April of this year, there were 1,244 such incidents, which, if the trend continues, would result in a total of 3,732 attacks by the end of the year. The data is based on the Police Entry Statistics (PES) of the federal police.
In a survey conducted by the EVG in 2024, a third of railway employees reported feeling insecure during their work, with two-thirds of respondents experiencing a deterioration in their sense of security over the past five years. Eight out of ten employees had already experienced a verbal or physical attack, with two-thirds of those incidents occurring in the past 12 months. A new survey is planned for 2025.