Frankfurt - Workers in the German banking sector embarked on brief token strikes Thursday in support of demands for higher pay. In the main banking centre of Frankfurt, some 500 clerks held a demonstration called by services union Verdi.

Verdi, Germany's second-largest union with some 2.2 million members, called the so-called "warning strikes" ahead of a third round of talks with employers set for Tuesday next week in Frankfurt.

"We are demanding a respectable rise. It is urgently necessary," Verdi spokesman Leonhard Regneri said, pointing to inflation in Germany running at well over 3 per cent.

Verdi is demanding 8 per cent more pay for the more than 250,000 staff employed in the banking sector, with a minimum increase for the lowest paid of 260 euros (410 dollars) a month.

Employers have yet to make an offer. (dpa)