Lufthansa - Facing hot summer

Lufthansa Faces Summer of Strikes by Cabin Crew

by Gregory Polek

 - June 22, 2015, 10:02 AM

Lufthansa could again see strikes disrupt operations during its busy summer travel season. (Photo: Lufthansa)

Lufthansa Airlines faces as many as two and a half months of strikes by its flight attendants after management and the UFO cabin crew union failed to reach a settlement over pay and retirement benefits. The union has set a deadline of June 30 to reach a pact before limited strike action begins on July 1. Lufthansa and the UFO reached an agreement in January to enter arbitration over the airline’s effort to institute cost-cutting measures. Last weekend the two arbitrators, Herta Däubler-Gmelin and Friedrich Merz, could not recommend a final settlement “due to the fundamentally different positions of Lufthansa and UFO.”

The UFO said it would announce precise dates of the planned strike action on July 1, when it plans to hold a series of rallies protesting Lufthansa’s attempt to cut corporate pensions and transitional benefits. The union said it would continue the work actions until at least September 16, and that the frequency and any necessary expansion of the strikes “will depend on the readiness of the executive board of Lufthansa.”

In essence, Lufthansa could avoid the strikes if it offers to settle by June 30, accepts the conditions to which the parties agreed last year and maintains the previous benefits structure until the sides reach a deal, said the union.

Lufthansa pilot unions engaged in a series of near crippling strikes for the airline over the past year in protest of the airline’s efforts to raise the retirement age for new-hire pilots from 55 to 60. Retired pilots can now draw 60 percent of their salary until they turn 63, at which point they become eligible for state- and employer-sponsored retirement benefits. The sides remain in arbitration over the matter.