The “notice” strike launched by the Ver.di union, which represents 20,000 ground employees of the national airline Lufthansa, began Wednesday morning in Germany and is well attended.
All German airports where Lufthansa is present are affected: Frankfurt, Munich, Cologne-Bonn, Düsseldorf, Hamburg, Hannover and Stuttgart and 1,023 flights have been cancelled.
And the company fears effects until Friday, the last day of classes before the summer holidays in Bavaria.
According to Wiwo.de, 134,000 passengers had to change their travel plans or cancel them altogether. Lufthansa has advised affected passengers not to travel to airports as most counters are empty.
Watch out for connections through Germany
Connections with Germany, especially for connecting flights, are also affected. On its website, the company states:
“Have you booked an international flight to Germany, but your connecting international flight from Frankfurt or Munich has been cancelled? In this case, Lufthansa recommends postponing the reservation for another day. If you fly to Frankfurt or Munich without a confirmed alternative flight there is a high risk that you may not be able to continue your journey for several hours or even days If you can arrange your journey yourself (eg rental car, bus, train), please keep all receipts for subsequent reimbursement. Same goes for any hotel room.
It was the handling, maintenance, security and counter employees who stopped the work.
Other companies affected
In addition to the 1,023 canceled flights, other companies could be penalized such as Swiss, Austrian and Air Dolomiti, which are managed at the hubs by Lufthansa ground staff. On the contrary, the flights of Eurowings, the low-cost subsidiary of Lufthansa, should not be affected by this movement.
Ver.di intends to “increase the pressure” on management, demanding a 9.5% salary increase, according to a statement.
For its part, management regrets that the negotiations are falling apart so quickly. Remember that he proposed an increase in the base salary of 150 euros per month from July, then another increase in the base salary of 100 euros per month from January 1, 2023, and finally an additional increase of 2% from July 1 from 2023 if the activity allows it
Source: BFM TV
