The pilots’ union Vereinigung Cockpit (VC) and the group’s management signed an agreement at the beginning of September on wage increases which made it possible to avoid a strike movement.
Lufthansa pilots will not strike until June 30, 2023 under an agreement signed by management and unions that ended a social action in early September, the two sides said on Monday. “The agreement provides for an obligation of social peace until June 30, 2023“inducing that”strikes are excluded until then“, said Lufthansa in a press release.
The pilots’ union Vereinigung Cockpit (VC) and the group’s management signed an agreement at the beginning of September on wage increases which made it possible to avoid a strike movement. This targets an increase of 980 euros in the basic remuneration of the pilots of Lufthansa and its Cargo subsidiary which will be paid in two instalments: at the beginning of August retroactively and on April 1, 2023.
Read alsoLufthansa: agreement with the pilots to avoid a strike
A rookie co-pilot will receive around 20% more base pay over the term of the deal, compared to a 5.5% increase for a late-career captain, according to details that were made public on Monday. The two partners in collective bargaining “will continue their constructive exchanges on various subjectsduring the social truce which opens, according to Lufthansa.
“more sustainable partnership”
Beyond the monetary agreement which satisfies it, Vereinigung Cockpit was delighted to enter a phase of “more sustainable partnershipwith the management, according to Marcel Gröls, responsible for collective bargaining in the union.
During the conflict phase leading up to the deal, the pilots had stopped work in early September for 24 hours, forcing Lufthansa to cancel almost all of its flights from Frankfurt and Munich – its two hubs in Germany. Europe’s leading air carrier has approximately 5,500 pilots in its passenger and freight transport activities. Vereinigung Cockpit is the only union representing them.
Read alsoAir France-KLM returns to ex-Alitalia
The group reached an agreement in early August with the Verdi union, which represents ground staff. Employees will receive an increase of 200 euros per month, then an additional 2.5% at the start of 2023 and another 2.5% in July 2023.