Rail strike disrupts service in Hungary

A nine-hour rail strike by workers seeking higher wages hit Hungary Monday with mixed results.

The strike was called by the union representing about 25 percent of the nation's 36,000 rail workers to reinforce demands for higher wages. The union, VDSZSZ, also wants about $1,500 for each worker as a bonus because of the sale of the state-owned rail system MAV's cargo operations.

The strike began at midnight Sunday and was suspended at about 9 a.m. Monday by the union, said The Budapest Times.

The national news ageny MTI said about half of the country's passenger trains continued running. It said trains from Budapest's Deli station in the south operated on schedule, while those from Keleti in eastern Budapest and Nyugati station in the western part of the capital were halted because traffic controllers had walked off the job. International trains were stopped at the border while national train traffic in the east and northeast was suspended because of a lack of train inspectors.

Commuter trains from Central Budapest station trains were operating but behind schedule, the report said.

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