German trade union calls for strikes at nation's northern airports on March 13

The Verdi trade union in Germany has called for strikes on Monday (March 13) at the country's northern airports. The strikes are likely to cause longer queues for passengers and flight cancellations. In separate statements on Saturday, the relevant regional branches of the services sector union said the strikes will affect Berlin's international airport, as well as the smaller airports of Hamburg, Hanover, and Bremen, the news agency Reuters reported.

At the Berlin airport, Verdi said it was calling security staff to strike because of disputes over pay for working nights, weekends, and bank holidays that had been going on for years. The strike at the airport would start in the early hours (of Monday) and finish at night.

The Hamburg branch of the trade union, meanwhile, said it was striking over the regular pay rise offered to public sector employees of two percent for the next 27 months and one-off payments of 1,500 and 1,000 euros, which it said was not enough given annual inflation running at around nine percent.

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Monday's strikes in Germany come nearly a month after workers at the country's eight airports went on a strike to demand better pay. According to the airport association ADV, around 295,000 passengers were affected by the cancellation of 2,340 flights at Bremen, Dortmund, Frankfurt, Hamburg, Hanover, Munich, Stuttgart, and Leipzig airports on February 17.

This strike was also called by Verdi which said the walkout was expected to have a strong impact, especially on domestic air traffic. The trade union has been leading negotiations for public sector workers, airport ground crew, and aviation security staff, demanding better pay at a time when workers are seeing their incomes eroded by a higher cost of living.

(With inputs from agencies)

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