Tens of thousands affected

Lufthansa cabin crew now on strike in Munich

(Bild: APA/dpa/Boris Roessler)

Lufthansa cabin crew continued their strike on Wednesday: At Munich Airport, flight attendants from AUA parent company Lufthansa and Lufthansa Cityline walked off the job at 4am. The cabin crew union Ufo plans to strike all Lufthansa departures in Munich until 11pm on Wednesday evening. The airline estimates that 50,000 passengers will not be able to take off. 

Lufthansa cabin crew had already gone on strike at Frankfurt Airport on Tuesday. According to the company, 600 connections were canceled there and around 70,000 passengers did not reach their destinations as planned.

15 percent more money demanded
The Ufo union is demanding a 15 percent pay rise for the approximately 18,000 Lufthansa cabin staff and the almost 1,000 employees of the regional subsidiary Lufthansa Cityline, with a contract term of 18 months. The union also wants an inflation adjustment bonus of 3,000 euros and higher bonuses.

Last week, hundreds of Lufthansa flights were canceled due to a warning strike by ground staff organized by Verdi. The wage negotiations for the approximately 25,000 ground staff are to continue on Wednesday and Thursday. Verdi is demanding 12.5 percent more pay for a twelve-month term, while the company has so far offered 10 percent for a 28-month term. After four rounds of negotiations, an inflation compensation bonus of 3000 euros is relatively uncontroversial.

Lufthansa ground staff in Munich have been on strike since 4am.(Bild: ASSOCIATED PRESS)

Lufthansa Chief Human Resources Officer Michael Niggemann appealed to the union on Tuesday: "We have made good, far-reaching offers to both Verdi and Ufo, both with salary increases of around ten percent," said Niggemann. "I think this is the basis for finding solutions in the short term. We are ready to negotiate."