Health risks: Truck drivers in Germany end hunger strike

2023-09-25 16:02:00

This was done on medical advice, said the Dutch trade unionist Edwin Atema, whom the drivers appointed as negotiator, when asked on Monday. An emergency doctor had previously expressed concern about the health risks.

Around 30 drivers started a hunger strike last Tuesday in a conflict with a Polish shipping company. For more than two months they have been trying to demand outstanding wages with their strike on the A5. The men say that some have not been paid for months. Talks with the company stalled weeks ago.

The emergency doctor Gerhard Trabert is the founder of the Poverty and Health Association in Germany and has repeatedly visited and treated participants in the strike with his team in recent weeks. He was also in Gräfenhausen at the weekend with a four-person team of doctors and a nurse. “A hunger strike is a life-threatening situation,” he said on Monday. “We cannot reduce the risk even with medical supervision.”

A number of drivers are dehydrated and therefore have blood pressure problems, others are immunocompromised due to infections. The situation is dangerous for the drivers, especially since after five days without eating, changes in metabolism begin and the body begins to break down skeletal muscles. The situation of drivers from third countries who spend months in rest areas and have no health insurance in Germany shows an urgent need for action, said Trabert. He spoke out in favor of medical contact points on European motorways.