Major German airports to be hit by 24-hour strike on Monday

Major German airports to be hit by 24-hour strike on Monday

Trade unions walk out of pay talks as employers say an 8% raise is unaffordable.

A Lufthansa jet taxis at Frankfurt Airport, Frankfurt am Main, Germany, on March 12, 2024. (EPA Images pic)
BERLIN:
Major airports across Germany, including its largest in Frankfurt, will be hit by a 24-hour strike on Monday after the German trade union Verdi called for employees in the public sector and ground handling services to walk out, it said in a statement.

The union, which is calling for an 8% wage increase, or at least an increase of €350 (US$380) more per month, decided to call the warning strike after a second round of collective bargaining failed last month.

Employers have rejected the demands as unaffordable. Negotiations are due to continue later this month.

Airports affected on Monday also include Munich, the country’s second busiest, as well as Stuttgart, Cologne/Bonn Düsseldorf, Dortmund, Hannover, Bremen, Hamburg, Berlin and Leipzig-Halle.

Frankfurt Airport and the airport in Berlin did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The planned strike marks a major escalation in negotiations after Verdi staged several walkouts at some airports in Germany, including a two-day strike at Munich, last month.

Shorter strikes at the airports in Düsseldorf and Cologne/Bonn led to almost 280 flights with around 48,000 passengers having to be cancelled, according to the ADV airport association.

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