A day-long warning strike began early Friday morning at Düsseldorf Airport. This was confirmed by a spokesman for the Verdi union. The union called the 700 workers at baggage and aircraft handler Aviapartner to the walkouts, which began at 3:30 a.m. and are expected to end at 12:30 a.m. on Saturday morning. Half of all flights at the airport have already been canceled, the spokesman said. There would be delays.
According to the airport, a total of around 290 flights were planned for Friday. Of these, 101 – i.e. about a third – were canceled, airport spokesman Marcus Schaff told the German Press Agency in the morning. “Since the airlines informed their passengers in advance about the cancellations and alternative offers, the situation in the terminal is calm and relaxed.”
According to Verdi, the participation rate in the warning strike was around 90 percent in the morning. “Participation is very good, the effects are as planned,” said the Verdi spokesman. Aviapartner has a market share of around 75 percent at Düsseldorf Airport. A total of up to 350 employees are normally on duty on Friday. In terms of passenger volume, the airport is the largest in NRW and the third-largest nationwide.
According to Verdi, 700 jobs are at risk
The background to the recusal is a reallocation of the handling tasks, in which Aviapartner did not get a chance. As a result, 700 jobs are at risk, Verdi said. Aviapartner is now refusing a social plan with severance payments for employees threatened with job loss. Protests were planned for 10:30 a.m. in front of the NRW Ministry of Transport. One of the new service providers at Düsseldorf Airport will be Wisag from April 1st. Since the license decision was announced at the end of December, the company has been “preparing intensively for its start at the largest airport in North Rhine-Westphalia”, Wisag announced on Friday.
Warning strikes by employees of the airport company, ground handling services and aviation security in Berlin had already brought passenger traffic at BER Airport to a standstill on Wednesday. With the action, Verdi wanted to increase the pressure on employers before the next negotiations.
“Obviously, Verdi discovered the German airports as a media-effective stage for strike actions,” said Ralph Beisel, chief executive of the airport association ADV, on Friday. It is irresponsible if the second major airport in Germany is subjected to a day-long strike within a week. “If an entire region is left behind by international air traffic, this has nothing to do with a warning strike,” says Beisel.
