A major strike brought much of Germany’s air traffic, rail service and commuter lines to a halt on Monday as workers demand wage hikes in the face of brisk inflation.

Workers at airports, ports, railways, buses and metro lines throughout much of Europe’s top economy heeded a call by the Verdi and EVG unions for the 24hour walkout.

“A labour struggle that has no impact is toothless,” Verdi boss Frank Werneke told public broadcaster Phoenix.

He acknowledged the stoppage would inflict pain on many commuters and holidaymakers, “but better one day of strain with the prospect of reaching a wage agreement than weeks of industrial action”.

Berlin’s usually bustling central train station was mostly quiet on Monday morning, after the national railway cancelled long-distance and regional links across the country.

Arrival and departure boards at Frankfurt airport, the nation’s biggest, and Munich airport showed rows of cancelled flights.

As the industrial action was largely publicised, many commuters had switched to other modes of transport.

In Berlin, Simon, 31, a student, said he was expecting 30 minutes more of commuting time as he had to use two buses rather than the regional train which had been cancelled.

But he said he found ‘the strike legitimate’ as ‘many people have mobilised for better working conditions’.

Retiree Gloria Bierwald, 73, said however that ‘the strike goes to far’.

“What the strikers are asking for is relatively exaggerated. I am of the opinion that people should be satisfied when they have a job.” To prevent supply gaps, Transport Minister Volker Wissing had ordered states to lift restrictions on truck deliveries on Sunday, while asking airports to allow late-night takeoffs and landings “so stranded passengers can reach their destinations”.

Verdi represents around 2.5 million public sector employees, while EVG represents 230,000 workers on the railways and at bus companies.

The rare joint strike marks an escalation of an increasingly ill-tempered dispute over a pay packet to blunt the impact of surging inflation.