In the collective bargaining dispute at Lufthansa, the regular pilots begin to vote on the outcome of the negotiations. The members of the Cockpit Association (VC) are called to vote by August 10, as the company and union announced internally on Thursday. According to VC, the approval of at least half of the voters is necessary to accept the package. Otherwise, strikes would threaten again.

The union’s collective bargaining committee had avoided committing itself unequivocally to the status of the negotiations with Lufthansa. However, she expressed the view that no better result could be achieved through negotiations.

Group seeks approval

In a circular, Lufthansa campaigned for the approval of the employees, who should receive at least 18 percent more money in several stages over the next three years. Together with two flat-rate increases from the previous year, there would be increases of between 25 and 50 percent over the entire period, depending on the classification. More significant are the additional agreements on working and on-call times in the general collective agreement and the abolition of a second collective agreement that was introduced years ago for newcomers.

A solution is also proposed for 150 captains of the discontinued subsidiary Germanwings, who are to switch to the mother company Lufthansa in their previous function. Around 550 Lufthansa pilots receive financial compensation because they can later become captains.

Another strike by around 5,200 Lufthansa and Lufthansa Cargo pilots is only off the table once the results have been accepted. In this round, the pilots paralyzed flight operations with a warning strike on September 2, 2022.