LH passengers warned of weekend strikes

Travellers flying on Lufthansa (LH) this weekend better brace for more delays and cancellations as the airline’s flight attendants continue with strike action until 7 September.

An escalating labor battle saw Lufthansa flight attendants walk off the job on Tuesday at Germany’s three major airports (Berlin, Frankfurt and Munich), stranding passengers.

After 13 months of failed talks, the Independent Flight Attendants Organization (UFO) has threatened a nationwide 24 hour strike, beginning on Friday, after the airline showed no signs of budging.

Lufthansa will be forced to cancel a majority of flights due to the strike action, with the airline warning passengers of unscheduled cancellations and delays.

Flights of Lufthansa Regional (Air Dolomiti, Augsburg Airways, CityLine, Eurowings) and Germanwings will not be affected, however, at this stage Lufthansa cannot say for sure what impact the strike action will have.

The airline posted a statement outlining regret that the labor dispute had been waged at the expense of its customers and will do all possible to communicate the details of the strike as soon as possible to minimize the impacts on its customers.

Eight hours of strikes on Tuesday led to Lufthansa cancelling around 350 flights at Tegel and Frankfurt Airports, and an 11 hour strike at Munich.

The battle comes as the country’s largest airline is trying to implement an ambitious cost-cutting program amid tough competition from budget carriers and government-owned Gulf airlines.

The union is seeking a five percent pay rise for Lufthansa’s 18,000 cabin crew workers after years of no increase.

Sourced: etravelblackboardasia