Status: 04/20/2023 10:37 a.m
The airport employees are demanding surcharges, but the employers have so far refused. Now the employees are on strike. Hundreds of flights are canceled in Hamburg, Düsseldorf and Cologne/Bonn, affecting more than 100,000 travelers.
At the airports in Hamburg, Düsseldorf and Cologne/Bonn, two-day warning strikes by security personnel began during the night. Hundreds of flights have already been cancelled. The trade union ver.di announced in advance that in addition to flight cancellations or cancellations, longer waiting times are to be expected.
The airport association ADV recently stated that around 700 departures would probably not take place on both days. About 100,000 passengers are affected. At the Hamburg Airport no departures are possible today and tomorrow, around a third of the arrivals have been cancelled. “The departure terminals are swept empty,” said Hamburg Airport. 308 flights were planned, affecting a total of around 80,000 travelers.
Rupert Wiederwald, WDR: “The strike is primarily about money, of course, but above all it’s about working conditions.”
tagesschau24 10:00 a.m., April 20, 2023
The Dusseldorf Airport reported failures and longer waiting times and called on travelers to find out more. According to the operator, 121 of the 204 planned flights at Cologne/Bonn Airport are canceled today, affecting around 28,000 passengers. Hardly any passengers came during the night and in the morning. The early announcement would have given many guests time to prepare for the warning strike. Flight cancellations are also expected on Friday.
Failures also at other airports
Because of the warning strikes fall loudly MR also domestic German connections at other airports, for example in Frankfurt. ver.di had also called for a strike at Stuttgart Airport on Friday.
In order to compensate for the canceled flights, many rebookings to Saturday and the following days are to be expected. Travelers are asked to contact their airline or tour operator.
Employees are demanding extra time
ver.di had appealed to employees in the aviation security sector who work in passenger control, personnel and goods control and in service areas. For them, the union wants to ensure that employers increase the time premiums for night, Saturday, Sunday and public holiday work and pay better overtime. Collective bargaining on April 11 and 12 had not resulted in an agreement.
A written offer from the Federal Association of Aviation Security Companies (BDLS) is insufficient and cannot be agreed because it does not bring any improvements for work on Saturdays and Sundays, surcharges for night work are too low and are only planned from 10 p.m. and not from 8 p.m. Employers for full-time and part-time employees did not want to pay any supplements for overtime or overtime. The next round of negotiations is scheduled for April 27th and 28th.
“Airports are again being misused as a platform for permanent strikes,” criticized ADV general manager Ralph Beisel. Industrial action aimed at paralyzing several airports and thus cutting off large areas of international and national air traffic went far beyond what was tolerable and were completely inappropriate.
Warning strikes on the railways on Friday
In addition to the ongoing strikes at the airports, work stoppages are also planned for rail transport on Friday. The railway and transport union EVG announced a warning strike from 3 a.m. to 11 a.m. The effects could last in long-distance traffic until the early evening.