Passengers at a board in the departure hall at Munich Airport on March 10, 2023.
Berlin – At airports in Berlin, Bremen, Hamburg and Today, traffic in Hanover practically stopped due to a one-day warning strike by security guards and ground control personnel. Hundreds of flights were canceled, complicating the travel plans of tens of thousands of passengers. Willy Brandt Airport on the border of Berlin and Brandenburg alone reported that today's restrictions affected about 27,000 passengers. With strikes that have been going on for several weeks in Germany, the Verdi trade union is trying to negotiate a 10.5 percent salary increase for 2.5 million workers in state and regional public services, but at least 500 euros (11,800 CZK) per month.
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Employees stopped work at Hamburg and Hannover airports late Sunday evening and were joined by security personnel at Berlin airport early this morning. This canceled all around 200 departures and about a third of the 200 scheduled arrivals.
“We ask passengers to check with their airlines about the status of connections,” Berlin Airport said. Other air ports have also published the same call.
Hamburg Airport has said that there will be no commercial departures due to the warning strike. Significant restrictions also affected arrivals. Hanover airport canceled all scheduled flights today except for a few arrivals, while all flights were canceled in Bremen.
The Verdi union said it was calling the strikes over disputes over pay for night, weekend and overtime work. holidays that have been going on for several years. In addition, in recent weeks, the unions have been stepping up the pressure for better pay for employees. The rounds of negotiations so far have not yielded any compromise. At the end of February, employers last offered a gradual salary increase in two steps of five percent and a one-time supplement of 2,500 euros (CZK 59,000), which the unions described as an insufficient offer. The next round of negotiations will take place at the end of March, until then trade unions from the Verdi union want to continue their warning strikes.
The trade unions have already announced another series of protests for this week. Warning strikes will be held at clinics in Brandenburg and Berlin on Tuesday, and will continue in Berlin on Wednesday.
