German Union Calls for 24-Hour Strike at Seven Airports on Friday
Workers at seven German airports will stage a 24-hour strike on Friday to push their demand for higher wages, said German trade union Verdi.
The affected airports include Frankfurt, the country’s largest, as well as Munich, Stuttgart, Hamburg, Dortmund, Hanover, and Bremen, said Verdi in a statement on Wednesday.
The strike is also expected to affect domestic travel in particular, according to Verdi, which said it had given an advanced warning about the strike, so passengers could find alternative options.
“The workers are jointly putting pressure on their respective employers because negotiations so far haven’t achieved any results,” Verdi deputy chairman Christine Behle said in the statement.
Verdi is currently leading negotiations for public-sector workers, airport ground crew, and aviation security staff, demanding better pay at a time when workers are seeing their incomes eroded by the higher cost of living.
Flights delivering aid to earthquake-hit Turkey and Syria will not be impacted, Verdi said.
“Inflation, high energy, and food prices are forcing many workers into a precarious situation,” said Ms. Behle. “They need significantly more money to make a living.”
Fraport, the operator of Frankfurt airport, which counted more than 48 million passengers in 2022, did not immediately respond to Reuter’s request for comment.
The union staged a similar strike at Berlin Brandenburg airport last month, leading to the cancellation or rescheduling of around 300 flights.