Germany's leading airline, Lufthansa, has canceled between 80% and 90% of its approximately 1,000 flights scheduled for Wednesday due to industrial action by ground crew. The cancellations are most severe at Frankfurt and Munich, the country's busiest airports, but Hamburg, Berlin, and Düsseldorf are also affected. The company warns over 100,000 passengers to reschedule their flights, especially those to and from Frankfurt and Munich.
Passengers are advised not to go to airports as rebooking counters will not be staffed. Domestic German flight tickets can be converted into rail travel vouchers. Flights by Lufthansa subsidiaries and external airlines are expected to operate normally. The strike is part of wage negotiations for around 25,000 ground crew employees at Deutsche Lufthansa, Lufthansa Technik, and Lufthansa Cargo. The staff rejected an employer's offer in the second round of negotiations.
Verdi, the union leading the strike, demands a 12.5% wage increase or at least an additional 500 euros per month over a year. They also want a one-time payment of 3,000 euros to counter inflation. This industrial action is the latest in a series of strikes causing disruptions at German airports and other public transport, impacting the economy and posing challenges for German Chancellor Olaf Scholz's three-way governing coalition.
Source: www.dw.com