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Participants of a rally take part in a Verdi demonstration in Frankfurt.
© Ardavan Safari/dpa
With a warning strike by ground staff, Verdi hits Germany's largest airline hard.
Without progress in negotiations, things could get even worse for passengers.
Frankfurt/Main - With a warning strike by ground staff at five locations, the Verdi union severely affected Lufthansa's flight operations.
Of the more than 1,000 flights originally planned, up to 90 percent were canceled on Wednesday.
According to Lufthansa, more than 100,000 passengers had to change their plans.
Less than half of the usual air traffic took place at the Frankfurt and Munich hubs, because Lufthansa is by far the largest customer at both airports.
In addition to a few Lufthansa jets, foreign companies that were not on strike, smaller domestic Lufthansa competitors and the Lufthansa Group companies Eurowings, Swiss, Austrian and Brussels were able to take off.
Verdi threatened longer strikes if the Lufthansa board did not significantly improve its previous collective bargaining offer for ground staff with around 25,000 employees.
The willingness to strike on the ground has never been so high in the past 20 years, said negotiator Marvin Reschinsky at a protest meeting with several hundred participants in front of the Lufthansa administration at Frankfurt Airport.
The warning strike sends a clear signal to the board: “We can go longer if you ask us to.”
“Bitter Day”
“It’s a bitter day for our passengers,” said Lufthansa human resources director Michael Niggemann on ZDF.
The escalation chosen by Verdi was not necessary.
In a speech, the manager asked the protesters to recognize the previous agreement with salary increases of up to 19 percent as well as the offer presented.
Reschinsky, however, accused the management of treating its own people disrespectfully.
“The two-class society between flying personnel and the ground must finally be ended.” Rally participants were very dissatisfied with their working conditions.
A baggage investigator reported: “We have 50 percent fewer employees than before Corona, but the work has remained the same.
Actually, we should demand even more.” A colleague said: “We need the increase to live on, everything has become much more expensive.”
The Federal Association of the German Aviation Industry (BDL) tried to de-escalate the situation.
“I appeal to the unions to shape the further collective bargaining rounds with a sense of proportion,” said BDL President Jost Lammers in Berlin.
“The right to strike is a very valuable and important good.
It should be a last resort.”
Verdi had called on employees of various Lufthansa companies in Munich, Frankfurt, Berlin, Düsseldorf and Hamburg to stop work from 4 a.m.
The warning strike is scheduled to run until 7:10 a.m. on Thursday.
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Verdi wants 12.5 percent more
In Düsseldorf, operations started smoothly, as an airport spokesman assured.
There were no delays or long waiting times between 6 a.m. and 8 a.m., when a particularly large number of planes usually take off.
14 of 15 Lufthansa flights in the NRW capital were canceled.
The 280 remaining takeoffs and landings on Wednesday should take place as planned.
Other passengers may only have to expect minor delays.
The Lufthansa subsidiary Eurowings is not affected.
She schedules all 52 departures.
In the collective bargaining dispute, Verdi is demanding 12.5 percent more salary, but at least 500 euros per month for a term of one year.
There will also be a group-wide inflation bonus of 3,000 euros.
Lufthansa has offered 13 percent more money and an inflation bonus for a period of three years.
The next round of negotiations is scheduled for Monday.
dpa