Nearly 500 flights were cancelled Thursday due to a strike by Lufthansa staff for higher pay and more job security.
As Lufthansa officials prepare for a new round of wage talkson Friday, staff of the German airline went on strike Thursday resulting in the cancellation of over 500 flights. A list on the company's website that was published Wednesday, showed a total of 688 cancelled flights, mostly to Germany and other European countries. The staff is demanding higher pay and more job security.
"Due to announced strikes of Lufthansa staff at the airports Frankfurt, Munich, Duesseldorf, Berlin, Hamburg and Cologne as well as several other locations on Thursday between 5:00 a.m. and midday (0400-1100 GMT), Lufthansa will cancel most of its domestic and short-haul flights. Long-haul flights are expected to operate on time," the carrier said on its website.
The strike was announced Wednesday by labor union Verdi and will reportedly last till 10:00 AM local time.
"We see this strike as disproportionate at this time. Talks are scheduled for tomorrow, and the exchange of demands has only just started," a spokesman for Lufthansa said.
The demands of the union include job guarantees along with a 5.2 percent increase in wages. However, the airline has offered zero percent increase in wages for the last two years and has extended working hours, which came as an "affront to all Lufthansa employees," the union said. Airline officers, however, stated that these steps were necessary so that the company could remain competitive in a tough market.
