Lufthansa strike
February 23, 2010
A strike by some 4,000 Lufthansa pilots has been suspended as of midnight Tuesday. Pilot union Cockpit agreed not to call any further strikes before March 8. It welcomed Monday's court decision to resume wage talks. The pilot's union also withdrew variable compensation, or profit sharing, from its list of key demands, which had been misinterpreted.
Both sides agreed to return to the negotiating table without setting any preconditions.
Germany's national carrier confirmed that both parties would resume talks immediately.
"The parties agreed in front of the court that the strike is to be suspended through the 8th of March", Lufthansa spokesman Andreas Bartels told AP news agency.
Lufthansa said the 4,000 pilots will return to work Tuesday though it would take some time for normal operations to resume.
The walkout began midnight Monday and caused the cancellation of hundreds of flights on Germany's largest airline, disrupting travel for thousands of people.
Lufthansa had asked a Frankfurt labor court for an injunction against the strike, which had threatened to drag on until Thursday. Representatives from the union and Lufthansa agreed to resume talks as they met before a judge Monday evening.
Travel chaos averted
The airline had earlier predicted that the strike would cause about 800 flights per day to be canceled, totaling 3,200 flights for the week. International routes were hardest hit by the strike, while most domestic service remained intact, Lufthansa said.
Cockpit spokesman Joerg Handwerg told the AFP news agency that the strike was "a great success."
Outsourcing to partners
The four-day strike could have cost Lufthansa more than 65 million euros ($88.4 million) and up to 100 million euros if all flights were grounded, according to estimates by the airline.
Lufthansa pilots are demanding a 6.4 percent pay raise, more influence in company decisions and a commitment that pilots will keep their jobs if Lufthansa shifts routes to affiliate airlines like Austrian Airlines or Lufthansa Italia, where pilots come cheaper.
Lufthansa wants to achieve 1 billion euros ($1.36 billion) in cutbacks by 2011.
svs/dpa/AFP/AP/Reuters
Editor: Michael Lawton