Berlin, Feb. 15, (dpa/GNA) - The trade union Verdi is sticking to its plan for a one-day strike at seven German airports on Friday, even after major computer problems at Lufthansa caused severe disruptions, mainly at Frankfurt Airport.
A union spokesperson said there was no reason to change the plan. On Wednesday morning, Lufthansa’s computer system broke down, forcing it to cancel and reroute flights en masse, especially at its main hub in Frankfurt. Thousands of passengers missed their connections.
Tens of thousands more passengers face further disruption when staff at Hamburg, Stuttgart, Dortmund, Hanover, Bremen and the Lufthansa hubs in Frankfurt and Munich go on strike over pay as planned on Friday.
An emergency service agreement had been reached for government flights in connection with the international security conference in Munich, the spokeswoman said.
The government planes would be handled, while other conference visitors would have to find alternative travel options.
Aid deliveries to earthquake victims in Turkey and Syria are to be exempt from the strike, organizers said.
The industrial action escalates the unions’ dispute with the federal government and municipalities ahead of a new round of negotiations over a 12-month collective bargaining contract for public sector employees on February 22 and 23.
Trade union Verdi and the German Civil Service Association (dbb) are demanding a pay rise of 10.5% or a minimum of €500 ($537) for the approximately 2.5 million employees in the public sector.
Aside from the public sector talks, collective bargaining agreements are also being negotiated for aviation security workers employed at the national level and ground staff at the local level.
Airport strikes were held last month in Berlin and Dusseldorf.
“Inflation, high energy and food prices are driving most employees into an insecure situation,” Verdi deputy chair Christine Behle said in a statement. “Many no longer know how to pay their rents and stock the fridge. They need significantly more money to make a living.”
She said Germany is suffering from a massive labour shortage among ground handling staff that can be fixed by offering more attractive pay.
Aviation security workers, meanwhile, would be entitled to an increase in bonuses under the unions’ terms.
Friday’s planned strike is expected to have a major impact on domestic air traffic in particular.
Air traffic is extremely susceptible to strikes because of the number of service providers that are needed to keep operations going. For instance, a strike by one of the small, but critical, security-related groups can often be enough to cripple an airport.
Verdi play a major role in Germany’s air traffic infrastructure as many members are represented under public sector wage agreements.
In April 2018, hundreds of flights were cancelled across Germany as collective bargaining stalled. Tens of thousands of employees in eight German states walked off the job. In addition to airports, public transport, daycares, clinics and swimming pools were affected.
GNA