The engineers will walk off the job at 2 a.m. local time on Oct. 25 and return to work at 8 a.m. Oct. 26, the Frankfurt-based GDL train-drivers union said in an e-mailed statement. The strike will affect local and regional railway traffic, the union said.

The GDL rejected Deutsche Bahn AG's most recent contract offer, which includes a one-time payment of 2,000 euros ($2,830) and a 10 percent raise, calling it "insufficient.'' The state- owned railway, which operates Europe's largest track network, has refused to meet the union's demands for a wage increase of as much as 31 percent.

Train drivers have held temporary walkouts during the past three months to press their demands for higher pay. Berlin-based Deutsche Bahn wants the railway's 12,000 train drivers to work two additional hours per week.

A ruling by a court in Chemnitz, Germany, on Oct. 5 prevents train drivers from striking on long-distance and freight routes. The GDL and Deutsche Bahn have both appealed the labor court decision.

Nov. 2 Hearing

The union wants the freedom to strike on any service, while the railway seeks to block all walkouts. The appeals court said today it will hold a hearing in the case Nov. 2.

Karl-Friedrich Rausch, Deutsche Bahn's passenger-service director, urged the union to return to negotiations and appealed to the GDL to at least wait until after the court's hearing at the end of next week to conduct further strikes.

The GDL is seeking a contract separate from one reached with the railway's other unions, while Deutsche Bahn says any agreement must be "within the framework'' of a previous accord with other workers.

Two other railway unions, Transnet and the GDBA, agreed in July to raises of 4.5 percent. Talks between the two unions and the GDL on developing a common strategy collapsed in September. Transnet and the GDBA together have 134,000 members.