Lufthansa Ground Staff Strike in Germany to Affect 100,000 Passengers on February 7

KEY TAKEAWAYS

• Lufthansa's ground staff in Germany, represented by the Verdi trade union, is set to go on a 24-hour strike on February 7. The strike will impact major airports in Germany, including Munich, Hamburg, Berlin, and Dusseldorf.
• The strike is scheduled to start at 04:00 on Wednesday and last until 07:10 on Thursday, affecting 80 to 90 per cent of Lufthansa's flight schedule and more than 100,000 passengers.
• The strike is intended to show employers how strikes can impact travelling as they are about to enter the next round of negotiations over payment and working conditions.

Germany’s flag carrier airline, Lufthansa, can be hit by a strike on Wednesday after the trade union Verdi called on the airline’s ground staff to go on a one-day strike.

According to DW, the strike will affect the busiest airports in Germany – Munich, Hamburg, Berlin and Dusseldorf and follows the strike held by security staff, which grounded hundreds of flights last week.

The strike, organised by Verdi, will begin at 04:00 on Wednesday and last until 07:10 on Thursday, while Lufthansa has criticised the decision calling for a strike, which is expected to have 80 to 90 per cent of Lufthansa’s flight schedule — and more than 100,000 passengers — to be impacted.

Since all ground staff, from maintenance to passenger and aircraft handling, will be called to the strike, it will most likely lead to major cancellations and delays. 

Verdi Union

This is the fourth major strike in Germany so far this year, as the Lufthansa and Verdi union, which represents around 25,000 ground staff working, are still under negotiations.

A pay increase proposal from Lufthansa bosses was rejected by Verdi for being too low on February 23. The union wants an increase of 12.5 per cent to wages or at least a boost of €500 per month for 12 months, as well as requiring a one-time inflation-offsetting payment of €3,000.

The upcoming industrial action will serve as a ‘warning strike’ to put pressure on the employers and show them how much the strike can impact travelling, as the next round of talks is set for February 12.

The Union warned that the employees are prepared to call on longer strikes if Lufthansa cannot accept their demands. Lufthansa is also facing a two-day strike by pilots at its daughter company Discover Airlines, tomorrow.

Verdi, which is one of the largest unions in Germany, represents workers from several sectors, and last week, it also called public transport workers across the country to join the 24-hour strike.

German rail workers also started the year with the country’s longest-ever train strike following a series of “warning strikes.” Strikes have become more common in Germany in the past year as workers see their wages hit by inflation and the general decline of the German economy, which is highly related to the labour shortage.

In order to attract workers, Germany began a four-day working week test last week, hoping to address the lack of workers in several sectors and revive the German economy.