Hundreds of flights were canceled in Düsseldorf, Cologne/Bonn and Hamburg on Thursday due to a warning strike by security personnel. The airport association ADV announced that around 45,200 passengers would be directly affected. On Friday, the walkout will be extended to Stuttgart. Even those who want to switch to the train will need patience: due to a warning strike in the industry, there will be no long-distance trains nationwide until the early afternoon.
In Cologne/Bonn alone, 121 connections were affected, as the airport announced on Thursday morning. More could follow. Hardly any passengers came during the night and in the morning. The early announcement would have given many guests time to prepare for the warning strike.
The halls at Hamburg Airport were also empty. No departures are possible there due to the strike. A third of the arrivals were also canceled, the airport said. 305 flights with around 38,000 passengers were planned in the Hanseatic city on Thursday alone. The airport criticized the action: “The strike affects many bystanders who will have few alternatives tomorrow due to the additional train strike,” said a spokeswoman.
According to ADV information from Wednesday, a total of 700 flights will not take place on Thursday and Friday. While work will be stopped on both days in Düsseldorf, Cologne/Bonn and Hamburg, the Verdi trade union in Stuttgart is only calling for it on Friday.
Employees in the aviation security area, in passenger control, personnel and goods control and in service areas are affected by the wage dispute at the airports. The background to this are negotiations between Verdi and the Federal Association of Aviation Security Companies about time supplements for night, Saturday, Sunday and public holiday work as well as regulations on overtime pay for security and service staff.
The Verdi union justified its call for a warning strike by saying that the negotiations had not led to a solution. They are scheduled to continue on April 27th and 28th.
