Lufthansa travel turmoil to worsen with ground staff strike

DEUTSCHE Lufthansa’s ground-crew union called a strike for Wednesday (Jul 27), escalating a crisis at Europe’s biggest airline after staffing shortages caused thousands of flights to be cancelled earlier in the summer.

The Verdi labor group called for members to take part in industrial action at Lufthansa’s German airport bases, a move that entail check-in personnel and other staff walk out over pay and conditions.

“Verdi is calling the one-day strike to raise pressure on the employer to make a much-improved and acceptable pay offer in the next round of talks,” the union said in a statement on Monday.

The move is likely to worsen the plight facing Lufthansa as it battles to cope with the twin demands of a sharp rebound in travel bookings and the impact of soaring inflation on pay packets. Passengers at airlines and airports across Europe have endured weeks of disruption as chronic worker shortages lead to flight delays and cancellations.

“After the enormous efforts to stabilise our flight operations, this means a renewed, considerable and unnecessary burden for our passengers and also for our employees, lasting beyond the day of the strike itself,” said Michael Niggemann, Lufthansa board member responsible for human resources.

While Lufthansa has so-far avoided the industrial action snaring rivals like Ryanair Holdings, its unions are starting to round on the airline’s management. Members of Lufthansa’s VC pilots union are holding a vote on whether to go on strike, a move that would inevitably lead to a further cut to scheduled flights.

SEE ALSO

Lufthansa cancels 2,200 flights as Europe’s travel chaos mounts

Ryanair, Brussels Airlines strikes disrupt European air travel

Strikes ground flights, shut runways at Paris airport

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Chief executive officer Carsten Spohr has pledged to boost earnings before interest and taxes to a minimum of 8 per cent by 2024, a move he said is needed to reduce debt. Disputes with worker representatives suggest he might have trouble reaching those targets, as he tries to balance the need for more staff with his desire for lower costs.

Still, the airline earlier this month said it returned to profitability in the second quarter, benefiting from surging travel demand that’s forced the sector to raise fares and limit seat availability. BLOOMBERG