Lufthansa has been hit by strikes almost every week since the beginning of the year. On the one side, by its ground staff and, on the other, by airport security workers in Germany overall.
The last minute cancellations, coupled with compensation obligations and reduced confidence from passengers have cost the airline almost €100 million just over the past few weeks, Lufthansa’s Chief Financial Officer Remco Steenbergen said at the press conference following the announcement of Lufthansa Group’s financial results in 2023.
“The uncompromising strikes by the trade union Verdi are damaging our guests, the company and ultimately our employees”, Dr. Michael Niggemann, Chief Human Resources Officer and Labor Director of the group said in a statement. We are always open to short-term negotiations with Verdi – however, we bear joint responsibility for finding good solutions. Verdi must suspend strike action and be prepared to enter into constructive negotiations without preconditions.”
Besides Lufthansa Airline, the group includes SWISS, Austrian Airlines, Brussels Airlines and Eurowings. All but Lufthansa achieved record results last year, leading to the group’s only third-best financial result. Nevertheless, even with Lufthansa keeping the group from achieving an all time record year, it still posted a €2.7 billion gross profit, 76% more than in 2022, and €1.7 billion net profit, 112% more than in the previous year.
Addressing the outlook for the year ahead, the group said it expects results to be particularly strong in the second and third quarter of the year, in line with the usual seasonality patterns. However, the gross loss in the first quarter is expected to be higher in 2024 than in 2023, due to the impact of the strikes on earnings and a decline in profits in the Logistics division, which in the first quarter of 2023 still benefited considerably from the exceptionally strong development of the air freight market post-pandemic.
As the group is announcing its financial achievements, Lufthansa is only able to operate about 10% to 20% of its flights on 7 and 8 March, as the Verdi union strategically called for a ground staff strike at this time. This also coincides with a German security staff walk-out that completely closed Frankfurt Airport.
Verdi has been condemning Lufthansa that, besides record profits, it still keeps its employees underpaid. On behalf of the ground workers, from maintenance to passenger and aircraft handling, the union is asking for a 12.5% salary increase, but at least 500 euros per month for a period of 12 months. On top of the raise, Verdi is also asking for a one-time bonus of 3,000 euros to offset inflation.
Several rounds of negotiations have taken place, but the parties keep accusing each other of being unwilling to compromise. Unless the airline and union reach an agreement, the strikes are unlikely to go away any time soon.
