Berlin, 27 March 2023 (dpa/MIA) - Over 30,000 railway workers alone are participating a massive transport sector strike that began in Germany on Monday, according to the EVG railway union.

"The willingness to strike is very high, and the anger among the workers over being stalled by the employers is huge," said EVG negotiating committee member Kristian Loroch.

"We are striking today because in collective bargaining, despite the tight financial situation for many workers, we have not been presented with anything that is worthy of serious negotiations," he added.

The strikes, which are set to last 24 hours from midnight on Monday morning, were expected to bring large parts of the country to a standstill, shutting down all long-distance rail routes and most regional trains across seven of Germany's 16 states.

Almost all German airports are on strike while buses and waterways all over the country are also affected.

Union activists are pushing for higher wages in the transport sector amid high levels of inflation.