Lufthansa is facing its third labour disruption in two months after the Independent Flight Attendants' Organisation (UFO) announced a one-day strike for cabin crew this Friday. The walkout covers staff at the core Lufthansa brand and personnel at its regional operator, Cityline.
The union said the industrial action will run from 12:01 a.m. to 10 p.m. local time on Friday (2201 GMT Thursday to 2000 GMT Friday), and that all Lufthansa departures from the airline's two main hubs, Frankfurt and Munich, will be affected during that window. Cityline cabin crew at nine German airports are also scheduled to take part in the stoppage.
The decision follows votes held at the end of March in which a large majority of those surveyed supported strike action after talks broke down. UFO says Lufthansa has not shown flexibility in negotiations covering working conditions for about 19,000 cabin crew members and in talks over the redundancy package for roughly 800 Cityline employees, which the union says are set to be wound down.
UFO chief Joachim V e1zquez B fcrger criticised the airline's response, saying: "This situation could have been avoided - the responsibility lies with Lufthansa, which has so far not even managed to put forward a proposal suitable for negotiation." The union's demands include more predictable shift patterns and longer advance notice of rosters.
Lufthansa urged the union to return to the negotiating table. A company spokesperson, Martin Leutke, said: "We apologise for the inconvenience caused to our guests by the UFO e2 80 99s disproportionate and very short-notice strike."
The cabin crew action comes after earlier walkouts this year. UFO and the pilots' union Vereinigung Cockpit staged a one-day strike in mid-February that led to widespread cancellations, and pilots carried out a further two-day strike in mid-March. The underlying pay dispute that has fuelled those actions remains unresolved.
From an operational perspective, the planned one-day stoppage will directly disrupt flights originating from Lufthansa's primary hubs and regional Cityline operations during the specified hours. The strike follows recent, related labour action and unresolved negotiations, and the airline has publicly reiterated its request for renewed talks.