Frankfurt Airport workers strike causing hundreds of flight cancellations

Published November 20, 2014

Hundreds more flights were canceled Friday at Frankfurt Airport, Europe's third busiest, as a ground workers' strike entered its second day.

However, international flights were not affected, and airport lines and delays otherwise appeared to be limited.

Mike Peter Schweitzer, spokesman for airport operator Fraport AG, said "just over 290" flights had to be canceled but that the airport was otherwise "operating smoothly." Airline Lufthansa said that 68 flights within Europe had been called off.

Herbert Mai, executive in charge of labor relations for Fraport, said the airport was able to maintain 70 percent of its daily flights on Thursday, the first day of the strike, exceeding its goal of operating more than half its 1,300 daily takeoffs and landings.

"We think that we can process even more today so that the strike repercussions are lower than expected or feared," Mai said.

Workers walked off the job Thursday afternoon for seven hours, and were to be on strike all day Friday.

The GdF union is engaged in a dispute with airport operator Fraport over pay and working conditions for some 200 ground workers.

GdF spokesman Markus Siebers said he could not say how long the strike would continue. "We have no offers up until now, and we are not even in contact" with airport management, he said.

URL

https://www.foxnews.com/world/frankfurt-airport-workers-strike-causing-hundreds-of-flight-cancellations