Railway workers began a strike across Germany today, Friday, causing services to almost halt during the morning hours as the scope of wage protests in the country with the largest economy in Europe expands.

Since last year, Germany has witnessed some of the widest strikes as the war in Ukraine has led to a sharp rise in energy and food prices, prompting unions to push for wage increases in line with the cost of living.

This massive inflation has exacerbated the problems of workers in sectors including the aviation sector, which is facing a difficult transformation after the Corona pandemic.

The railway workers' strike coincided with a strike at four German airports: Düsseldorf, Hamburg, Cologne/Bonn, and Stuttgart, following the cancellation of about 700 departures due to the strike at the first three airports yesterday, Thursday.

The railway workers' strike, organized by the German Railway Union (EVG), started at 3 AM local time (0100 GMT) and ended at 11 AM, but it is expected to affect train services nationwide throughout the day.

The German Railway Union also reported that about 22,500 employees at Deutsche Bahn participated in the strike, which adversely affected the state-owned company's services and 49 other railway companies.

The union, negotiating on behalf of 230,000 employees, seeks a 12 percent wage increase or at least an addition of 650 euros ($715) to the monthly wage. Deutsche Bahn offered a five percent increase and one-time payments worth 2,500 euros.