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A sudden strike by ground staff members at Lufthansa, the German airline, will result in the cancellation of flights for up to 200,000 passengers.
A sudden strike organized by 25,000 individuals belonging to the Verdi union with the intention of causing disruptions to passenger flights will take place from 4am on Tuesday, February 20th until 7:10am on Wednesday, February 21st.
The primary impact will be experienced at the central locations, Frankfurt and Munich, although employees of Lufthansa in Berlin, Cologne-Bonn, Düsseldorf, Hamburg, and Stuttgart will also participate in the strike.
Passengers on Lufthansa flights are advised that only approximately 10 to 20 percent of the scheduled flights will be operating due to the ongoing strike, especially on February 20th.
The German airline is currently transporting approximately 200,000 passengers per day. In addition to affecting Tuesday’s flights, they are also focusing on the “first wave” of departures on Wednesday, resulting in numerous cancellations.
According to a study conducted by The Independent, the majority of flights arriving and departing from Frankfurt and Munich, including those connecting to airports in the UK, are not operating on Tuesday.
The scheduled flight from Frankfurt to London on Wednesday has also been cancelled.
Lufthansa has stated that individuals impacted by flight cancellations due to the Verdi strike will receive notification through email or the Lufthansa app. We apologize for any inconvenience caused to our passengers.
According to the regulations for air passengers in Europe, individuals have the right to be rescheduled on the next possible flight and provided with food and lodging, if needed, at Lufthansa’s cost.
Negotiations between the labor union and the airline fell apart last week, as Verdi stated that 96% of its members had turned down Lufthansa’s latest proposal.
The labor union states that the salary of ground employees at Lufthansa is falling behind other workers, and in light of the airline’s high profits, they should “compensate employees for their income loss during the corona pandemic”. The union cautions that there may be significant flight cancellations and delays.
Marvin Reschinsky, the negotiator for Verdi, stated that the pilots in the group receive significant double-digit salary increases, with some earning up to €270,000 [£231,000] annually. Meanwhile, ground workers who have starting hourly wages as low as €13 [£11] are not being considered for compensation for the recent price increases.
“This is extremely unsociable.”
Discussions are set to resume on Wednesday following the conclusion of the strike.
Source: independent.co.uk
