Flights cancelled at Berlin airport

Admin l Monday, January 23, 2023

 

BERLIN – German trade union Verdi announced an all-day strike at the capital’s Berlin-Brandenburg airport (BER) for Wednesday. No passenger flights will land or take off from the airport.

Ground handling services, the airport company as well as aviation security will be affected, the union announced on Monday.

“In this situation, the airport company must assume that no regular passenger flights can take place at BER on this day and, with this in mind, has also informed all partners at the airport about the announced strike,” the airport company said.

Around 300 take-offs and landings with about 35,000 passengers had been scheduled. Verdi is demanding €500 ($544) more per month for ground staff and the airport company employees, with the collective agreement to run for 12 months.

Verdi said the employers’ side is demanding longer contract periods for both the ground services and the airport company.

In addition to the administration, the airport company also employs firefighters, airport security and traffic management.

According to Verdi, 6,000 workers are affected by the ongoing negotiations. According to the union, negotiations for aviation security workers are taking place nationwide, but in seven rounds of negotiations there has been “virtually no progress at all.”

“There is still no signal from the employers that they want to find a solution,” the union said.

According to the union, the negotiations are about an “increase in time bonuses for night, Sunday, holiday and Saturday work as well as a better collective agreement on the payment of overtime.”