Travel across Germany was severely disrupted yesterday (March 27) due to strikes by workers from both the ver.di Service Workers Union and the EVG Union. And the impact of the industrial action could well spill over into today (March 28), according to European media.
According to Euronews, both Munich and Frankfurt airports cancelled all their flights for yesterday.
Frankfurt Airport’s operator, Fraport, said on its website: “Due to a strike by the German Union ver.di airport operations will be heavily disrupted at Frankfurt Airport throughout today. There will be no regular passenger flights.”
Munich Airport too, released a statement on its website saying: “On Sunday, March 26 and Monday, March 27, 2023, there will be no regular passenger traffic at Munich Airport due to all-day strikes.”
Bremen, Dortmund, Hamburg, and Stuttgart airports have also cancelled all flights, with more airports expected to follow.
Dusseldorf Airport cancelled almost all of its flights yesterday morning, March 27, with serious disruption expected into this morning (March 28).
Disruptions are also expected at Cologne/Bonn Airport, while all domestic German flights have been cancelled at Leipzig and Dresden airports.
Lufthansa has released a statement on its website, saying that the strikes at several German airports will stop operations at the airline. It also notes that it will not be able to offer solutions to all of its travellers due to the severity of the strikes, and that travellers should check the service page for any flight irregularities.
Train services in Germany are also expected to be impacted by the strikes. German rail operator, Deutsche Bahn, has cancelled all long distance trains expected to run yesterday, while numerous services have also been cancelled for today. The operator has a notice on its website saying that “DB long-distance and regional services are suspended on Monday, March 27, due to a strike by the trade union EVG.”
Workers from both unions are reportedly staging the strikes over pay increases. Ver.di is seeking a 10,5% increase in pay, while EVG wants an increase of 12%.
