July 1st strike at Lufthansa averted at last minute

The impending strike of cabin crew at Lufthansa scheduled to start on the 1st July has been avoided, albeit temporarily. The strike was originally set to commence tomorrow on the basis that negotiations between the airline’s board and the flight attendants’ union, UFO had broken down over pay and pensions. A series of one day strikes was set to commence and continue through the summer season until September 16th if Lufthansa did not come up with a better offer than the one which was on the table. Due to the progress made in the latest talks the union has postponed the date of the first strike now to the 16th September according to a cabin crew union official who informed journalists.
The major problem surrounding the airline is their inability to remain competitive against both low-cost airlines and the Gulf carriers. Part of their cost-cutting measures was aimed at increasing pension contributions made by current cabin crew as low interest rates are badly affecting the current pension arrangements. The costs of the scheme, which amounted to EUR€3.7 billion (USD$4.1 billion) last year, are exceptionally high because the stresses of frequent flying allow Lufthansa pilots and cabin crew the option to take early retirement at age 55. The current stand-off revolves around UFO’s desire to keep contributions at the same level with no increases in pension contributions whatsoever.
UFO have said that its members are ready to talk and Lufthansa’s Chief Executive, Carsten Spohr, indicated to journalists he was confident a deal could be sorted out. Spohr said the airline ideally hoped to make sure that those employees who had been with the company the longest would be affected to a lesser degree by the changes in the pension structure.