At Lufthansa, the announced warning strike by ground staff began last night. Along with Frankfurt am Main, Munich airport will be hit hardest by the planned 27-hour strike. At Erdinger Moos Airport, 80 to 90 percent of the 400 planned Lufthansa flights are canceled.
At the other airports in Germany, connections to and from Frankfurt and Munich have generally been canceled. The first flights were canceled on Tuesday evening. According to the company, more than 100,000 passengers had to reschedule.
What does this mean for passengers?
Under no circumstances should passengers of canceled flights come to the airport, warned Lufthansa. They couldn’t expect any help there. “Due to the strike, the rebooking counters are unfortunately not staffed,” said the airline’s website.
Free rebooking options are available via lufthansa.com, the customer app and the service center. If you have booked a flight within Germany, you can convert your ticket into a train voucher on the website, Lufthansa said.
It is very quiet at Munich Airport on Wednesday morning.
(Photo: Sven Hoppe/dpa)
The Lufthansa check-in counters are also deserted.
(Photo: Sven Hoppe/dpa)
The Verdi union has called on Lufthansa ground staff to go on an all-day warning strike.
(Photo: Sven Hoppe/dpa)
However, passengers from Lufthansa subsidiaries and external airlines are not or hardly affected. For example, the direct flight subsidiary Eurowings is planning to fly its entire program. At the hubs in Munich and Frankfurt, the skeleton crews are supposed to give priority to the flights of the foreign Lufthansa sister companies Swiss, Austrian and Brussels Airlines in order to keep their networks functioning. Lufthansa customers will then also be rebooked on these flights.
Lufthansa is expecting a bumpy start to operations on Thursday with some cancellations and delays. Operations should have completely returned to normal by Friday. The company criticized the union’s actions: “Even before the actual negotiations begin, the length and extent of the strike are completely incomprehensible.”
What does Verdi demand?
In the ongoing collective bargaining dispute, Verdi is demanding 12.5 percent more salary, but at least 500 euros per month for a term of twelve months. There will also be a group-wide uniform inflation compensation bonus of 3,000 euros. The next round of negotiations is planned for February 12th in Frankfurt am Main. Lufthansa points to past wage increases and has offered 13 percent more money and an inflation compensation bonus for a period of three years.