The full-day warning strike in Germany affects the airports in Munich, Stuttgart, Frankfurt, Cologne/Bonn, Düsseldorf, Dortmund, Hanover, Bremen, Hamburg, and Leipzig-Halle. The Berlin/Brandenburg airport will even completely cease operations. According to an initial estimate by the airport association ADV, more than 3,400 flights are expected to be canceled in Germany, and around 510,000 passengers will not be able to start their journeys as planned, the association reported in Berlin.

Berlin Airport Ceases Operations Due to Warning Strike

All planned departures and arrivals cannot take place on Monday, as the Berlin/Brandenburg airport announced on Friday in Schönefeld. Passengers are advised to check with their airline or travel organizer about rebooking options and alternative travel possibilities. The background is the wage dispute with the federal and local governments, with the next round of negotiations scheduled for mid-March. At the once municipal airport operators, a larger portion of the staff is still employed under public service wage rules. A sectoral collective agreement is also being negotiated for ground handling services. Recently, employees in hospitals, nursing homes, kindergartens, and other social institutions have gone on strike.

Warning Strikes at German Airports: Impact on Flights from Austria Threatened

"We are forced to this warning strike because the employers have not yet presented an offer in the ongoing wage negotiations for public service employees and have shown no willingness to meet our justified demands," explains Verdi Vice-Chair Christine Behle. The actions were announced early to provide passengers with planning security. The 24-hour strike is set to begin at midnight on Monday and continue until 11:59 PM. The strikers in Frankfurt are expected to gather for a rally in the morning.

Due to the strike in German aviation at eleven airports there on Monday, there may be delays or cancellations of dozens of flights to and from Austria. From Vienna alone, there are - at least on strike-free Mondays currently - six flights to Munich, five to Stuttgart, eleven to Frankfurt, seven each to Düsseldorf and Hamburg, and two each to Hanover and Leipzig. There is also a Monday flight from Klagenfurt to Hanover. From Salzburg, there may be difficulties with one flight to Berlin, one to Munich, three to Frankfurt, two to Düsseldorf, and one to Hamburg. From Linz, there are normally three flights to Frankfurt, and from Innsbruck, two to Munich. The specific impacts are still open, said the Vienna airport on Friday, which does not rule out such impacts for certain connections. Travelers are advised to check the websites of their airlines or travel organizers for information.

German Union Demands More Pay and More Days Off

In the ongoing wage round, the airports in Cologne, Düsseldorf, Hamburg, and Munich have already been struck, each resulting in numerous flight cancellations. At Frankfurt airport, public service employees held a warning strike in March 2023 - then coordinated simultaneously with the Railway and Transport Union (EVG). Verdi demands a wage increase of 8 percent, but at least 350 euros more per month, and higher bonuses for work during stressful and unfavorable times. Training allowances and intern salaries should be increased by 200 euros per month. Additionally, the union demands three additional days off. Employers have rejected these demands as unaffordable. The wage negotiations will continue from March 14 to 16, 2025, in Potsdam.

The AUA parent Lufthansa and the airport association ADV have criticized the strikes at the traffic infrastructure hubs. "Two-day strikes that cut off German metropolitan regions from international air traffic have long ceased to be warning strikes," said ADV Managing Director Ralph Beisel after the warning strikes in Munich and Hamburg.

(APA/Red)

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