Frankfurt and Munich affected
Lufthansa subsidiary goes on strike before Christmas
December 22, 2023, 10:11 a.m
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There’s also this: Shortly before Christmas, it’s not just the weather that’s causing problems for rail customers, now the Lufthansa subsidiary Discover is also on strike on December 23rd. Two of Germany’s largest airports are affected.
Immediately before Christmas, the pilots’ union Vereinigung Cockpit (VC) called on its members to go on a warning strike at the Lufthansa subsidiary Discover Airlines. The union announced that all departures from Germany will be on strike between 8 a.m. and 1 p.m. While the airline reacted with incomprehension, the union accused the company of dragging out negotiations on a collective agreement.
At the time in question, there are eleven Discover flights on Frankfurt’s timetable, including to long-haul destinations in Florida and the Dominican Republic. In Munich the company operates under Lufthansa flight numbers, so that ultimately 16 departures could be struck. The number of passengers affected initially remained unclear.
The airline Discover Airlines, founded in 2021 and known as Eurowings Discover until September, is the Lufthansa Group’s new holiday airline. The airline is headquartered in Frankfurt am Main, operates a fleet of 24 aircraft that fly to short-, medium- and long-haul tourist destinations and employs around 2,000 people.
According to the union, the reason for the warning strike is the stalled negotiations surrounding the first collective agreement for pilots at the still young subsidiary. The employer and union were now well on the way to reaching at least a partial agreement, the VC said the day before. However, the employers had until the end “used a stalling tactic by pulling concessions off the table and at the same time demanding new conditions for tariff classification,” criticized the VC. You need safe framework conditions for the cockpit staff.
VC explained that the union’s demands include, among other things, the introduction of a salary scale and regulations on flight duty and rest times. This is the first warning strike. Everything else depends on “whether the employer takes our warning seriously.”
The company, however, spoke of “very good advanced discussions”. We are on the home stretch towards concluding a collective agreement. “Partial agreements have already been reached and the clear intention is to continue negotiations in January and to reach a conclusion quickly,” said a spokeswoman. Solutions can only be found at the negotiating table and we are ready to continue the joint discussions at any time.