Verdi is calling for another warning strike on Friday
Warning strikes at Verdi – massive disruption to air traffic nationwide
The Verdi union has called on 25,000 aviation security employees to go on strike. At least 1,100 flight cancellations are expected. The union wants to increase the pressure on employers. Reporter Farina Fichtner-Zenker reports on the status of collective bargaining on WELT TV.
The aviation security forces are on strike. Almost everything is at a standstill at many German airports. Up to 1,100 flights are expected to be canceled nationwide. The union is threatening another strike at Hamburg Airport on Friday.
FFlight passengers have to have strong nerves this Thursday: the Verdi union began its aviation security warning strikes late on Wednesday evening. Everything came to a standstill at many airports. And the Verdi union has already announced the next strike: the ground transport service providers at Hamburg Airport are to stop work on Friday. All departures and around 40 arrivals are to be cancelled.
On Thursday the strike leads to numerous flight cancellations: In Cologne/Bonn No night shift passenger control showed up for duty. Participation there is one hundred percent, said the responsible union secretary Özay Tarim. Almost all flights are canceled, a spokeswoman said in the morning. This means that the picture has become even worse compared to the start of the strike that night.
Also at Germany’s largest airport Frankfurt almost everything stands still. As the airport operator Fraport announced, no boarding is possible in Frankfurt. Therefore, numerous flights were canceled. However, the main customer Lufthansa had announced that it would maintain the majority of its program in Frankfurt, including long-distance flights. Originally, 1050 departures and arrivals were planned.
Around 300 people gathered in a bus parking lot at the airport. “I think this is a clear sign of a reasonable conclusion next week,” said Mathias Venema from the Verdi union. Then no one would ask why the republic was being paralyzed. However, if no collective agreement is reached, “we’ll just have to do it again,” said Venema, with a view to further strikes.
Even at the airport Berlin-Brandenburg An airport spokeswoman confirmed that all 170 takeoffs had been canceled. In addition, around every fourth arrival has been canceled. The airport terminal was largely deserted.
At the airport in Dusseldorf According to the announcement, around a third of take-offs and landings should be canceled. Some planes were diverted to Münster/Osnabrück.
In Hanover All departures have been canceled, as stated on the airport’s website. At the airport Bremen there will also be impairments. According to the airport’s website, five of 14 flights were canceled on Thursday. In addition, the number of arrivals at both airports is decreasing.
The consequences at the airports are also serious Berlin, Hamburg and Stuttgart, where all starts were canceled. In total, the strike planned until late Thursday evening (midnight) affects eleven major German airports outside Bavaria.
There are also disruptions at the airports in Saxony and Thuringia. A total of eleven airports in Germany are specifically affected, including: Dresden, Erfurt and Leipzig.
Stefan Hilbig, Verdi union secretary, said there are currently 100 strikers on site at Leipzig airport. More will be added as the day shift begins.
According to estimates by the airport association ADV, around 1,100 flights nationwide are canceled or can only take off late. Around 200,000 passengers are affected. Normal flight operations should not be possible again until Friday. Then the next Verdi warning strike is already planned – this time nationwide, in local public transport.
Because the aviation security forces have also been called on a warning strike at all other major airports in Germany, the number of arrivals is also decreasing. There will only be departures without passengers. This can happen if airlines need the aircraft in question at the destination airport on the same or the following day.
Long queues
For the flights that take place on Thursday despite the adverse conditions, travelers have to be prepared for long waiting times at security checks. In order to speed up the checks, you are asked to keep hand luggage to a minimum.
In the collective bargaining dispute, Verdi is demanding 2.80 euros more wages per hour, higher functional bonuses and overtime bonuses from the first hour of overtime. The new collective agreement should have a term of 12 months. The demands go too far for employers. Collective bargaining is scheduled to continue in Berlin on February 6th and 7th.