Lufthansa cabin crew set to strike

Join this forum to discuss the latest news that happened in the world of commercial aviation.

Moderator: Latest news team

User avatar
sn26567
Posts: 40828
Joined: 13 Feb 2003, 00:00
Location: Rosières/Rozieren, Belgium
Contact:

Re: Lufthansa cabin crew set to strike

Post by sn26567 »

Strike started this morning at 05:00 and will end at 13:00. One quarter of the flights (especially short-haul) are cancelled. This includes LH1004/5 and LH 1008/9 to/from BRU.

The flight attendants union UFO asks for a salary increase of 5% to compensate the absence of salary increase during three years.
André
ex Sabena #26567

User avatar
b.lufthansa
Posts: 180
Joined: 15 Sep 2008, 08:25

Re: Lufthansa cabin crew set to strike

Post by b.lufthansa »

In my opinion all other sort of negotiations have come to an end and no agreement has been reached. A strike is a threat of last resort during negotiations.

In a factory you stop the production, in public sectors you stop the service you provide ...

It's terrible that the passengers are held hostage in this situation, they might have to go to an important business meeting or they are going on a well-deserved holiday they worked for for 5 years. But as I said: strike is the very last thing one can do in case of disagreeement between company and unions. And the Lufthansa management has been warned many months before!

I quote wikipedia:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Strike_action
wikipedia strike action wrote:The strike is typically reserved as a threat of last resort during negotiations between the company and the union

User avatar
sn26567
Posts: 40828
Joined: 13 Feb 2003, 00:00
Location: Rosières/Rozieren, Belgium
Contact:

Re: Lufthansa cabin crew set to strike

Post by sn26567 »

b.lufthansa wrote:It's terrible that the passengers are held hostage in this situation, they might have to go to an important business meeting
I hope the strike will be over by 12 September: I have booked LH1005 to FRA for an important business meeting, and this particular flight is cancelled today!
André
ex Sabena #26567

B.Inventive
Posts: 79
Joined: 19 Nov 2010, 19:08

Re: Lufthansa cabin crew set to strike

Post by B.Inventive »

People seem to always forget that usually when pilots/cabin strike, it's because they want better conditions of work (thus life).
Does it seem fair to you to deny them the right to fight for better living conditions, or do you really think that 1 meeting/holiday is worth more than a person's living conditions (which concern the rest of their career)?

Honestly, I agree it is a very very very last resort, but it is our SOLE weapon to threaten management with, IF they choose to ignore our necessities, and it should be used in a proper fashion. (advertised in due time)
In belgium often strikes are unannounced, this due to the foul nature of our belgian legal system which has the right to refuse a strike. In the end, even in the reasons are SOLID, the legal system will always prevent a strike, thus only little options remain.
It's a shit solution but it is, when it is used, the only one...
I agree, It's hard to explain this to our clients, but since they do not decide how our company is run, they should have no influence on this issue. (And I know they pay our salary but in the end the demand for lower prices creates the requirement of cutbacks too thus in 'a' way they force us to worse conditions, which we should not accept, aviation is NOT cheap, get over it)

Boeing767copilot
Posts: 1385
Joined: 13 May 2004, 00:00

Re: Lufthansa cabin crew set to strike

Post by Boeing767copilot »

Fraport orders halt to Frankfurt-bound flights

http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/08/ ... 1620120831

Passenger
Posts: 7266
Joined: 06 Dec 2010, 20:54

Re: Lufthansa cabin crew set to strike

Post by Passenger »

B.Inventive wrote:People seem to always forget that usually when pilots/cabin strike, it's because they want better conditions of work (thus life).
Does it seem fair to you to deny them the right to fight for better living conditions, or do you really think that 1 meeting/holiday is worth more than a person's living conditions (which concern the rest of their career)?
The strike is not for "better conditions of work": the strike is for a 5 % salary increase.

The setup of the strike is: com'on Lufthansa, it's cheaper for you to give in to our demands, than paying for all the damage we are now causing. Hmmm: looks pretty much to the definition of blackmailing - or even hostage, isn't it?

B.Inventive
Posts: 79
Joined: 19 Nov 2010, 19:08

Re: Lufthansa cabin crew set to strike

Post by B.Inventive »

The blackmailing occurs from both sides, believe me.

And what you are blabbering about is besides the point I was making.
IF tomorrow you want to cut salaries in half, and promise your employees you will increase this salary again in more prosperous times and you don't do as you promised, you are basically calling your personnel dumb for believing yet you know they have only one way to counter your falseness. You reap what you sow.

Passenger
Posts: 7266
Joined: 06 Dec 2010, 20:54

Re: Lufthansa cabin crew set to strike

Post by Passenger »

B.Inventive wrote:IF tomorrow you want to cut salaries in half and promise your employees you will increase this salary again in more prosperous times...
Sorry, I did not know that Lufthansa has cut the salaries in half (or has plans to do so). But even if that has been done, it remains scandalous that the unions use passengers as hostage. And no, a strike is not the last solution: there is not one single German law that forbits you to resign and go to work somewhere else, were salaries are decent (that is, if salaries at LH indeed as bad as you suggest).

And what your "more prosperous times" concerns: just today, I've received IATA's Market Analysis 07/2012. Well, it seems that aviation is far from that prosperous times: "Year-on-year rates have been volatile but there is now a clear slowdown in the trend, driven by the fall in business confidence and world trade growth... Recent falls of business confidence in a number of major economies suggests growth in air travel and freight is likely to slow further in the next few months ".

b-west

Re: Lufthansa cabin crew set to strike

Post by b-west »

I'm currently in the Lufthansa business lounge in Frankfurt. The lounge is even more crowded than usual. I was talking to a lady from New Zealand who has been stuck here since 9 am, waiting for a flight to Athens. My own flight from Naples was delayed for around 1 hour, we were scheduled to leave at 13.20 but only left at 14.15. The plane landed in Naples at 13.40, so it must have been in the air already before the end of the strike.

The line at the Lufthansa service desks is epic. I saw staff handing out water to the people in the queue.

User avatar
sn26567
Posts: 40828
Joined: 13 Feb 2003, 00:00
Location: Rosières/Rozieren, Belgium
Contact:

Re: Lufthansa cabin crew set to strike

Post by sn26567 »

Hm! At 553 euros for the 2 x 300 km of a day return between BRU and FRA, LH is not exactly losing money on MY economy fare!
André
ex Sabena #26567

Air Key West
Posts: 1107
Joined: 23 Jun 2007, 20:51
Location: BRU

Re: Lufthansa cabin crew set to strike

Post by Air Key West »

"I hope the strike will be over by 12 September: I have booked LH1005 to FRA for an important business meeting, and this particular flight is cancelled today!" wrote SN26567 (André)

Why not try the IC trains ? Much better and cheaper than to fly, imho, if you have to travel from Brussels to Frankfurt. Three direct trains per day at (usually) convenient travel times. Flexible return fare 1st class is 350 euros.
In favor of quality air travel.

User avatar
sn26567
Posts: 40828
Joined: 13 Feb 2003, 00:00
Location: Rosières/Rozieren, Belgium
Contact:

Re: Lufthansa cabin crew set to strike

Post by sn26567 »

During Friday’s eight-hour strike, LH had to cancel 200 out of 360 flights at Frankfurt Airport. Some long-haul flights were not able to operate and FRA could not give landing clearance for arriving aircraft from domestic European destinations for about 90 minutes due to a lack of parking positions.

Munich has reported 15 LH flight cancellations. Dusseldorf reported one cancellation; Berlin Tegel, three; and Stuttgart, one.

Source: ATW online
André
ex Sabena #26567

Air Key West
Posts: 1107
Joined: 23 Jun 2007, 20:51
Location: BRU

Re: Lufthansa cabin crew set to strike

Post by Air Key West »

cnc wrote:
Air Key West wrote:
cnc wrote:time to recruit new fresh hostesses and kick those who refuse to work
And send them to work camps in Russia, perhaps, like the Pussy Riots ? :evil: I don't think I ever said this on this forum, but this time, I cannot help it : Shame on you !
and the link between the strike and the pussy riots is?
i guess either you have no clue about the shape LH is in atm or you wish harm to the LH group :roll:
The link with the Pussy Riots ? Seems clear to me. If you don't agree with the policy of your leader or boss, if you were the boss, people would get fired immediately. The next step is sending your employees to work camps, like in Russia with the Pussy Riots. If this kind of nonesense of yours is not stopped, we already have an idea of what the next steps could be.

As to the shape LH is in, LH is still one of the best performing network carriers in Europe, but like many airlines they are suffering from high oil prices and from people who think that flying should be for free or nearly for free, although they are prepared to pay between 1.58 and 1.81 euro for a liter of petrol for their own cars.

In addition, if my memory serves me right, there is no automatic indexation of salaries in Germany like in Belgium. So, inevitably, employees have to renegotiate their collective bargaining agreements and salaries on a regular basis, which can lead to tensions between employers and employees and sometimes to strikes, perhaps more often than when you have an automatic indexation of salaries which automatically increases salaries if there is an increase in the cost of living.

But we are having these discussions on the right to strike every time there is a strike in the airline sector.
So, we know who thinks what. Just like the discussions in favor/against Ryanair. I won't react anymore.
And remember, except for wildcat strikes, the right to strike is a legal right (in democratic countries at least). But some people on this forum seem to prefer dictatorship over democracy (sigh).
In favor of quality air travel.

Passenger
Posts: 7266
Joined: 06 Dec 2010, 20:54

Re: Lufthansa cabin crew set to strike

Post by Passenger »

Air Key West wrote: And remember, except for wildcat strikes, the right to strike is a legal right (in democratic countries at least). But some people on this forum seem to prefer dictatorship over democracy (sigh).
Actually, for an airline a wildcat strike offers more legal protection then an announced strike. Because a wildcat strike means hand of god (overmacht/force majeure) for EU Regulation 261/2004.

Talking about democracy. That also means equal rights to all, isn't it? Well, if employees have to right to stay off just like that, why don't we give employers the legal right to terminate labour contracts from those who don't show up for work and/or who damage the company by not showing up for duty?

cnc
Posts: 1311
Joined: 19 May 2009, 16:14

Re: Lufthansa cabin crew set to strike

Post by cnc »

bravo Air Key West! harming a company and thus endanger people their jobs is democracy in your eyes.
if i drive by your house and i don't like the looks, i tell you to repaint the house and you give a "NO" i'm allowed to block your door and garage too right? because its my democratic right to blackmail you untill you give in to my demands. it would never come to my mind to just take another route :roll:

IveVR
Posts: 3
Joined: 29 Jun 2012, 16:50
Location: Antwerp, Belgium
Contact:

Re: Lufthansa cabin crew set to strike

Post by IveVR »

cnc wrote:bravo Air Key West! harming a company and thus endanger people their jobs is democracy in your eyes.
if i drive by your house and i don't like the looks, i tell you to repaint the house and you give a "NO" i'm allowed to block your door and garage too right? because its my democratic right to blackmail you untill you give in to my demands. it would never come to my mind to just take another route :roll:
You seem to ignore the fact that in some cases collective action can really be necessary to get things moving as some empoyers also tend to just say NO too when their employees as them to listen to their grieves. Do you realize the amount of positive things we nowadays take for granted but would not have been here today without collective action of employees? And yes, collective action does imply causing damage, because the goal of a strike is putting pressure on the employer (and unfortunately employers tend to only listen when they are hit in their wallet).

However, I personally think that there are other ways to sufficiently damage the employer, without causing direct problems to the customers! So I agree on the fact that a strike can be unappropiate, but please do not generalize!

User avatar
luchtzak
Posts: 11734
Joined: 18 Sep 2002, 00:00
Location: Hofstade, Zemst - Belgium
Contact:

Re: Lufthansa cabin crew set to strike

Post by luchtzak »


Passenger
Posts: 7266
Joined: 06 Dec 2010, 20:54

Re: Lufthansa cabin crew set to strike

Post by Passenger »

luchtzak wrote:Tomorrow a new strike is planned: http://www.hln.be/hln/nl/942/Economie/a ... ansa.dhtml
Confirmed on Lufthansa.com:

https://www.lufthansa.com/de/en/Travel-information

WC_EEND
Posts: 76
Joined: 02 May 2011, 20:26
Location: Gent
Contact:

Re: Lufthansa cabin crew set to strike

Post by WC_EEND »

I'm flying them on September 9 *crosses fingers*

User avatar
liebensd
Posts: 1780
Joined: 31 Mar 2003, 00:00
Location: Hoeselt, Belgium
Contact:

Re: Lufthansa cabin crew set to strike

Post by liebensd »

WC_EEND wrote:I'm flying them on September 9 *crosses fingers*
I will fly them tomorrow 4th September. The first flight is with Augsburg Airways, that should work. The second flight will be Lufthansa :?

Post Reply