Germany’s leading carrier, Deutsche Lufthansa AG, had to cancel nearly 1000 flights yesterday due to warning strikes from pilots that work for Eurowings and Cityline. Lufthansa has been scrambling to put passengers on buses or other airlines. This strike comes after weeks of pay negotiations with the airline. The union demands a pay increase by 9.8%.
Easyjet, a leading competitor of Lufthansa, has been eating up many of the customers. ”A strike at Lufthansa would of course be just fine by us. Then we could introduce business clients, who normally do not fly with us, to our business services. It is an opportunity for us to win new clients. So we are looking forward to the Lufthansa strike,” said John Kohlsaat of the airline.
As well as the pilots, Lufthansa staff have also expressed that they may walk-out of their jobs if the contract with Verdi is not reached.
I think that the Lufthansa pilots union is asking for too much. A nearly 10% increase in pay is a much bigger check for the airline to write. Although Lufthansa expects to post profits for the year, it’s no doubt that soon they may be facing the same troubles that airlines in America face.
Image: baeg.blogspot.com
