Eurowings entering arbitration on cabin crew labor dispute

BERLIN – A union representing cabin crews working for Lufthansa's budget unit Eurowings says it has agreed to open an arbitration process with the airline to resolve a long-standing dispute over pay and conditions.

The UFO union said Monday that both sides had agreed on entering a binding process, and would hold talks over the coming days to decide upon an arbitrator.

A rival union representing other cabin crew at Eurowings came to an agreement in December for a raise package over three years.

The two unions have staged several strikes in the long-running dispute.

Separately, Lufthansa reached a preliminary agreement on a labor deal with its pilots last week after a series of strikes that had repeatedly paralyzed the airline's fleet.