Status: 07/28/2022 07:51
According to the union ver.di, the strike by Lufthansa ground personnel has ended since six o’clock. Flight operations can resume normally. More than 130,000 passengers were affected by the shutdown.
Lufthansa ground personnel are no longer on strike. The strike that began on Wednesday morning “had ended at six o’clock”, Ver.di representative Marvin Reschinsky told AFP news agency. “Employees have resumed their work and flight operations can take place regularly.”
There are no planned flight cancellations, a Lufthansa spokeswoman said. Busy days can be expected at the airports as Baden-Württemberg has started its summer break and Bavaria will follow at the weekend.
More than 130,000 passengers affected by the strike
Midway through the summer travel season, Lufthansa’s ground crew had brought the airline’s operations to a halt with a strike. The airline canceled almost all flights at the Frankfurt and Munich hubs, and Lufthansa food flights from the capital’s BER airport to Frankfurt and Munich were also cancelled. Lufthansa spoke of around 1,000 flights canceled, with more than 130,000 passengers affected.
The second round of collective bargaining between Lufthansa and ver.di for around 20,000 land workers was unsuccessful. The union is demanding 9.5% more wages and a minimum wage of €13 per hour for a period of twelve months.
Lufthansa presented an offer consisting of fixed amounts and a component dependent on the development of the business with a term of 18 months. Trading is scheduled to continue on August 3 and 4 in Frankfurt am Main.
Union demands: Wissing must mediate
Meanwhile, Federal Transport Minister Volker Wissing urged ver.di and Lufthansa to reach a speedy settlement on the collective bargaining dispute. “Responsible and quick negotiation is appropriate after air traffic already has enough problems to deal with,” Wissing told Bild newspaper. The conflict must be resolved “within the scope of collective bargaining autonomy”. “Both parties to the collective agreement should think about travelers and not settle their dispute behind their backs.”
The Union campaigned for Wissing to get involved in the collective dispute. “Sir, bring the collective bargaining parties to the negotiating table. Take your responsibility for German air traffic and make sure people can finally fly on their well-deserved vacation after two years of travel restrictions,” the deputy said. President of the CDU/CSU Parliamentary Group, Ulrich Lange, from the newspaper “Bild”.