LUFTHANSA STRIKE HITS AIR TRAVEL FOR SECOND TIME THIS MONTH – Pressure in wage talks due to continue today increases
Ground staff at German airline Lufthansa walked off the job at major airports in their second strike this month, raising the pressure in wage talks due to continue today.
Lufthansa spokesperson Martin Leutke said it could only operate 10% of scheduled flights at the affected airports, which include the country’s biggest hub in Frankfurt as well as Munich, Hamburg, Berlin, Duesseldorf, Cologne and Stuttgart
The first flights were cancelled on Monday evening.
Germany, Europe’s largest economy, has been hit with several nationwide strikes affecting air travel, railways and public transport, as workers faced with high inflation demand greater pay.
The latest strike at Lufthansa comes after the airline presented a new wage offer for some 25,000 ground staff workers last week.
Verdi is demanding a wage rise of 12.5% or at least 500 euros more per month over 12 months, plus a one-time payment of 3,000 euros to offset inflation.
These high demands have become necessary as Lufthansa’s ground staff has lost 10% of its purchasing power in comparison to 2021, Verdi’s Reschinsky said.