Lufthansa says strike cost millions, cancels flights

[CountAllVotes]

Source: Reuters

FRANKFURT (Reuters) - German airline Deutsche Lufthansa said Friday's strike by its cabin crews that brought Frankfurt airport, Germany's largest, close to a standstill cost the company millions and forced it to cancel another 19 flights on Saturday.

The UFO union of the flight attendants declined to say when it was planning the next labor action over its demands for a 5 percent pay rise and guarantees that Lufthansa will not outsource jobs and use more temporary workers.

UFO warned this week that industrial action could continue for a long time and widen into nationwide stoppages if Lufthansa does not meet its demands.

The strike on Friday, the first in the current round of negotiations, disrupted hundreds of flights and stranded thousands of passengers. A spokesman for Lufthansa, Germany's largest airline, said it would take some time to calculate the exact damage from the stoppages.

Read more: http://www.chicagotribune.com/business/sns-rt-us-lufthansa-strikebre88005d-20120901,0,1323345.story

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My suggestion is that the powers that be in Germany settle up with Lufthansa ASAP! They want a 5% raise and some guarantees that their jobs will not be outsourced.

I suppose this is too much to ask for.

[urbuddha]

1. If they didn't want a strike they should have negotiated a better deal with their employees !

These major corporations want everything for the top executives but forget that they
would not have what they have without the little guys ,too. Hopefully, the employees
will get what they wanted.

[SoapBox]

2. Another haven for Crooks and Thieves...

The airlines in the U.S. have been robbed blind over the years, by a whole host of CEO Creeps and Crooks. They march in like the Music Man, bringing with them their private group of Thieves and clean the place out...gee, JUST - LIKE - BAIN!

One of those dirty little secrets about most U.S. carriers is that the majority of heavy maintenance is done outside of America...and take your pick where its done...Latin America, South America, Asia...any place but here!

Next time you travel to Japan or such, the next flight your aircraft may take will be an empty one, to some low baller in Asia.

[TBF]

3. Solidarity with the flight attendants -

I think the board can suck it up and give them a raise. After all, it looks like their salaries are not too shabby:

http://reports.lufthansa.com/2011/ar/notes/otherdisclosures/supervisoryboardandexecutiveboard/remunerationreportfortheexecutiveboard.html

[CountAllVotes]

4. TOTAL: 10,781,905 € one year 4 people

Effective remuneration for the 2010 financial year

TOTAL: 10,781,905 €

This amount was paid to four individuals that are named at the link you have provided.

Thanks very much for proving what greedy pigs these corporate monsters are.

Suck it up is right!!!!

UNION YES.

[cpamomfromtexas]

5. Stay Tuned Tuesday, Judge appointed by President Obama expected to abrogate AA Pilots contracts

Background: in 2003 Pilots took anywhere from 23-40% (and some even more) paycuts to supposedly keep American Airlines out of bankruptcy.

Fast forward 8+ years, and AA now is expected to start punitive measures since the pilots voted the "offer" down. The offer included the worst contract terms in the history of aviation. Nice reward for all of their sacrifices over the last near decade. Now that most of them are bled out and have no savings left, they are now expecting abrogation this week. Most commute to work across country because they cannot afford to live close to the airport they fly out of. My husband commutes to Miami.

Here's a few of the items in the last best final offer from the company:

If you are sick more than 36 hours, you cannot access your sick bank without a 3rd party review. (The FAA forbids pilots from flying sick or even fatigued- now faced with not making the mortgage this month, how many pilots will pick going to work sick?

If you are hurt or disabled on the job, too bad. There are no provisions for this.

There are a number of other items including loss of pension.

[harmonicon]

6. Lufthansa is a fantastic airline.

I suspect actions like this are WHY they are a fantastic airline.

[CountAllVotes]

7. Lufthansa Attendants to Resume Strike Tuesday, Union Says

>> Deutsche Lufthansa AG (LHA) flight attendants will stop work Sept. 4, expanding the length and locations of an eight-hour walkout Aug. 31 over a 13-month wage dispute at Europe’s second-biggest airline.

Details of the cabin crew’s actions will be provided at least six hours in advance of the strike, the Unabhaengige Flugbegleiter Organisation union said in an e-mailed statement today. The UFO, which says it represents about 19,400 flight attendants in the contract talks, didn’t say how many flight attendants would go on strike.

“Since Lufthansa provided no signal to the UFO after the strike at Frankfurt airport, the labor dispute continues,” the union said in its statement.

Lufthansa canceled at least 207 flights Aug. 31, primarily within Europe, as well as services to and from some U.S. cities, Tel Aviv and Chennai, India, according to Lufthansa’s website.

More here:

http://www.businessweek.com/news/2012-09-02/lufthansa-attendants-to-resume-strike-tuesday-union-says

It is far from over, that much I know!