Germany: Union calls 3-day Lufthansa floor employees strike

Lufthansa floor employees are to go on strike for 3 days starting Wednesday as a wage dispute between the German flag service airline and commerce unions continues.

The announcement by the commerce union Verdi comes simply seven days after the final one-day floor personnel strike on February 20.

Since then, Lufthansa has made one other “improved” supply, in keeping with head of human sources Michael Niggemann, which included bringing ahead the primary of two wage will increase from December to March this 12 months and a faster pay-out of a €3,000 inflation compensation bonus.

But Verdi has once more rejected the supply as “insufficient,” repeating its calls for for both a 12.5% improve or a minimal month-to-month improve of €500, whichever is increased.

A fifith spherical of talks is scheduled for March 13 and 14.

Verdi: Passengers shouldn’t be affected

Accusing Lufthansa of failing to enter into mediation, the union says it’s deliberately putting in such a approach in order to not disrupt passengers — but it surely mentioned that this might change in future ought to calls for not be met.

“In our first step, we are responding to the employer’s attempt to ride this out by not disrupting passangers,” chief negotiator Marvin Reschinsky mentioned, with out explaining exactly how this is able to be achieved.

“However, should this irresponsible behavior from Lufthansa continue, we regret that passengers will also soon be affected again by strikes. It’s in Lufthansa’s hands to prevent that.”

The newest strike comes amid a wave of commercial motion throughout Germany, together with on the railways. Coinciding with the newest Lufthansa strike, native public transport employees within the western state of North Rhine-Westphalia are additionally set to strike on Thursday and Friday this week.

How are the strikes affecting the German financial system?

Germany’s central financial institution, the Bundesbank, has cited the strikes as one potential issue within the nation’s GDP contracting by 0.3% year-on-year within the remaining quarter of 2023 and shrinking over all the 12 months mixed.

Ahead of Lufthansa’s final strike on February 20, the Bundesbank mentioned it might “not be ruled out that the various strikes, among other places in areas like rail and air travel, reduce productivity.”

The German authorities final week drastically downgraded its development forecast for 2024.

mf/msh (AFP, dpa)