Lufthansa workers to strike over pay

FRANKFURT - Reuters

People wait at the Lufthansa Terminal at the Hamburg airport on March 21 during workers’ strike who are preparing for a new one on April 22.

Trade union Verdi has called on thousands of workers at German airline Lufthansa to go on strike on April 22 to increase pressure on management in pay negotiations.

Verdi, representing about 33,000 employees, described a pay offer put forward by Lufthansa management on April 17 as “scandalous” and said that it would represent a drop in pay in real terms over the next 12 months.

German airline Lufthansa said it is considering legal action after trade union Verdi called on thousands of workers to go on strike to increase pressure on management in pay negotiations.

Lufthansa said the planned action, which would see workers walk off their jobs for a full day at several airports - including Europe’s third largest at Frankfurt - goes far beyond a regular “warning strike” and would cost the airline tens of millions of euros.

“It’s completely out of proportion,” a Lufthansa spokesman said. “Especially given that four further dates for pay talks had already been agreed upon.”

Staff held a one-day strike on March 21, forcing Lufthansa to cancel nearly 40 percent of its flights for the day.

Like European peers Air France-KLM and SAS , Lufthansa is trying to keep down staff costs as it battles competition from low-cost carriers and fast-growing rivals from the Gulf.