ETF Railways

02/10/2026

SOS PSO Italy!

The ETF supports Italian Trade Unions as they push back against measures that threaten to break up the Intercity network 🚄💪

🫵 Rail must remain a strong, connected public service built on skilled workers and fair conditions. Italy’s Intercity network is at risk.

🫵 Fragmented tenders will weaken services, increase costs and put pressure on workers.

Read the full statement of the ETF Railways Steering Committee here

The European Transport Workers’ Federation is standing firmly with Italian Trade Unions as they warn that Italy’s Intercity train network is being put at risk. The ETF Railways Steering Committee has made clear that recent legislative changes threaten to fragment a vital national service, weaken...

21/09/2026

18/09/2026

Our General Secretary met today with the leadership of our affiliate, the Panhellenic Federation of Railway Workers (Πανελλήνια Ομοσπονδία Σιδηροδρομικών), to discuss the situation facing railway workers in Greece.

The Greek railway sector has been profoundly affected by years of financial crisis and austerity, which brought cuts to the network, public investment and employment, followed by the privatisation of the national rail operator TRAINOSE – today Hellenic Train.

Then came the devastating Tempi train crash in February 2023, which claimed 57 lives and injured 181 people. Later that year, Storm Daniel caused enormous damage to Greece’s railway infrastructure, particularly in Thessaly.

Today, Greek railway workers continue to face serious challenges: insufficient public investment, understaffing and precarious employment, including the widespread use of fixed-term contracts.

ETF is determined to strengthen its support for our Greek affiliates. We want to ensure their closer involvement in the work of the ETF Railway Section and Urban Public Transport Committee, and connect them more closely with our network of unions organising workers across the European operations of the FS Group, which owns Hellenic Train.

Strong railways need investment. They need safe and resilient infrastructure. And above all, they need enough workers with secure, quality jobs.

✊ ETF stands with Greek railway workers in their fight for a safe, properly funded and socially sustainable railway system.

04/09/2026

This week six railway workers lost their lives in an attack on a Kyiv railways depot. They were doing what railway workers do every day: keeping people and goods moving, keeping communities connected, keeping society functioning , even in wartime.

We mourn their loss together with their families, colleagues, and the entire Ukrainian rail community. Their dedication and bravery will not be forgotten.

The ETF stands shoulder to shoulder with Ukraine’s railway workers and their trade unions. Your fight to keep the railways running is a fight for life, dignity, and resilience.

You have our full solidarity.

Ukrainian officials say 20 people, including two children, were injured in the capital and the wider region.

03/09/2026

Stop violence! More respect for Staff!
Today, ETF’s Swiss affiliates SEV - Gewerkschaft des Verkehrspersonals, representing workers in railways and public transport, and kapers CabinCrewUnion are taking action for stronger protection of workers.

As the number of physical, verbal and sexual assaults against transport workers by passengers in public transport and aviation has been rising sharply since the Covid-19 crisis, the ETF alongside the SEV and kapers stress now, more than ever, the need to protect workers from violent behaviours.

Tangible solutions exist to provide a safer workplace:
🧑‍🤝‍🧑Appropriate staffing
🫂 Comprehensive support system for victims
⚖️ Adequate legal protections

Read more here: https://www.etf-europe.org/news/standing-safe-workplaces-etf-supports-swiss-action-against-violence

04/08/2026

Public transport unions in the United Kingdom are raising urgent concerns about the lack of access to toilet facilities for bus and train drivers, a problem that has persisted for years but is now reaching a breaking point. Reports from across the UK show drivers being forced to work entire shifts w...

06/07/2026

🛤Rail freight across Europe faces significant challenges that impact not only employment and working conditions, but also environmental policy objectives, national economies, and the resilience of European supply chains.


In light of the ETF campaign to strengthen rail freight, the European Works Council of ÖBB organised an event on rail freight in Budapest to raise awareness of the current difficult situation facing rail freight in Europe and to present concrete solutions from the perspective of the sector's employees and their unions.

ETF‘s Railways Section Chair, Gerhard Tauchner and Senior Policy Officer for Railways, Jedde Hollewijn, exchanged with EWC members, trade unions and rail freight operators from Hungary, Austria, Italy and Romania on the challenges facing the sector, and new ways to go forward.

Strong political will and courageous new policy are needed to not only save rail freight and single wagon load transport in the short term, but to make the sector the most attractive and sustainable option for Europe’s industry in the long term.

02/07/2026

How do we ensure the future of rail freight works for workers as well as technology?

ETF railway affiliates recently visited the Digital Automatic Coupling (DAC) Train Test Lab in Berlin for a hands-on look at one of the most significant innovations in European rail freight.

Testing the technology firsthand and exchanging views with experts, we emphasised that innovation must go hand in hand with meaningful involvement of workers. Their expertise is essential to ensuring that safety standards are maintained, the technology meets operational needs, and the transition is fair and beneficial for all railway workers.

As the sector moves towards digitalisation and automation, social dialogue and worker involvement remain key to delivering a successful and just transition.

Read more about the visit and why it matters for the future of rail freight: https://www.etf-europe.org/etf-railway-affiliates-visit-dac-testing-facility-in-berlin/

10/06/2026

🚆✊ Today, railway workers across France are on strike.

Our affiliates La CGT des Cheminots, UNSA-Ferroviaire and CFDT Cheminots Officiel are striking because:

🔴 1 in 3 SNCF workers reports anxiety or depression, with workplace accidents up over 50% in three years

🔴 Endless restructuring plans are destroying working conditions and breaking teams apart

🔴 Workers in subsidiaries are being stripped of the rights and protections enjoyed by the rest

ETF stands in full solidarity with French railway workers today. Workers deserve dignity, stability and a strong public rail service.

04/06/2026

🚂 Rail freight in Europe is in crisis.

Decades of underinvestment, insufficient public support and the damaging effects of liberalisation have pushed the sector into a crisis that is impossible to ignore.

Meeting in Tbilisi 🇬🇪, the ETF Railways Section unanimously adopted a statement with 7 measures to turn the tide, ahead of next week's EU Transport Council:

- Recognise rail freight as a public service
✅ Secure long-term public investment in infrastructure
✅ Protect the single-wagon-load system
✅ Foster cooperation between rail operators across Europe
✅ Improve working conditions and tackle labour shortages
✅ Create a level playing field across all transport modes
✅ Guarantee job security for workers during restructuring

👉 Read the full statement: https://www.etf-europe.org/etf-railways-section-proposes-7-measures-to-reverse-the-agony-of-the-rail-freight-sector-in-europe/