Eurowings: 400 flights canceled because of 24 hour strike

The union UFO announced that Eurowings’ cabin crew strike would begin on Monday, after negotiations about pay and other contract conditions fell through. After two weeks, UFO said it may call for indefinite walk-outs, though not during the Christmas period.

Some 400 flights have been cancelled on Thursday, affecting close to 40,000 passengers, said a report in The Daily Mail UK. Many of its European flights have also been cancelled but long-distance flights and those from Frankfurt and Munich aren't affected.

A leading member of UFO said that the union felt there was no other choice but to call the strike after Eurowings’ management had taken their own proposal for a resolution off the table on Wednesday.

The budget carriers are embroiled in a dispute with UFO over new employee contracts. The strike was set to be limited to flights owned by Eurowings alone, but UFO later on Thursday called on Germanwings employees to join their peers at the German budget carrier, bringing the number of potentially affected flights to about 90.

Eurowings said in a statement issued Oct. 26 that it could not agree on a solution in the tariff conflict despite Wednesday’s intense talks. However, management said it offered all Eurowings Germany flight attendants not only substantial increases in remuneration, but also a conciliation of all open-wage agreements at Eurowings. The offer corresponds to an average increase of 7% over the three-year and three-month period, plus variable compensation, among other benefits. “With this whole package of improvements and significant tariff increases, we go to the limit of what is and can be done in an economically difficult environment,” Eurowings MD Joerg Beißel said in a statement. UFO said Oct. 26, “There is no alternative to the strike. We are very sorry for the escalation.”

The strike also includes Germanwings cabin crew members, which are based in Düsseldorf, Cologne, Hanover, Stuttgart, Berlin and Hamburg.