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STRIKES

Union calls Lufthansa ground staff strike at German airports

Union Verdi called on ground staff at Lufthansa to stage a walkout on Tuesday across Germany's biggest airports, in the latest strike to plague the country in recent weeks.

A man sleeps on a bench at Frankfurt airport during the Lufthansa strike.
A man sleeps on a bench at Frankfurt airport during the Lufthansa strike. Photo: picture alliance/dpa | Boris Roessler

Verdi called on Lufthansa ground staff to stage a walkout on Tuesday across Germany’s biggest airports, with ground staff and staff in passenger operations such as those at check-in desks all involved in the walk-out. 

In a surprise move on Monday, staff at Frankfurt airport kicked off their strike earlier than planned, leading to dozens of flight cancellations after 8pm in the evening.

The industrial action at the other six airports – including Munich and Berlin – started at 4:00am on Tuesday and will end at 7:10am on Wednesday, the union said in a statement.

READ ALSO: Why Germany is being hit by strikes almost every day

More than 100,000 passengers are expected to be impacted by the walkout, said Lufthansa in a separate statement, adding that it was drawing up an alternative flight plan.

The airline’s human resource chief Michael Niggemann blasted the union’s decision, saying the action would once again “put a disproportionate burden on our guests”.

But the union said no progress had been made in negotiations on working conditions, calling the strike of 25,000 workers, including maintenance employees and airport counter staff across the company.

Among sticking points were what the union said were an overly low pay offer made to the staff in comparison to other employee categories such as pilots.

“While the company is offering pilots with annual basic wages of up to €270,000 ($298,000) raises reaching two digit figures, ground staff are unable to break even given the inflation of the last years,” said Verdi’s lead negotiator Marvin Reschinsky.

The union added that it expected major flight disruptions over the walkout.

The tail of an airplane belonging to the German carrier Lufthansa is seen poking out from a hangar door at Munich international airport

The tail of an airplane belonging to the German carrier Lufthansa is seen poking out from a hangar door at Munich international airport. Photo: Tobias SCHWARZ / AFP

“We don’t want this escalation. We want a quick result for employees and passengers,” said the union, which is seeking pay rises of 12.5 percent, and a minimum of €500 more a month.

READ ALSO: Should Germany expect further airport strikes in weeks ahead?

Lufthansa has offered to raise wages by four percent in December before another 5.5 percent increase in February 2025.

It has also said it would pay a €3,000 inflation bonus to each worker.

The next round of negotiations will take place on February 21st.

Germany has been hit by a spate of strikes across varying sectors including transport, the civil service and supermarkets.

Pinched by inflation over the last years and in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, workers are demanding higher wages to cope with the cost of living.

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WILDLIFE

Southern Germany sees explosion of mosquitos after floods

First flooding, and now a plague of mosquitos: hoards of the annoying bloodsuckers are spreading on Lake Constance. Here's what to expect if you are visiting the region.

Southern Germany sees explosion of mosquitos after floods

After severe floods in southern Germany, conditions are ripe for mosquito populations to explode, according to an expert in the region. 

Rainer Bretthauer, environmental and climate protection officer at the city of Radolfzell on Lake Constance, told DPA that the popular holiday location is already seeing signs of a mosquito plague.

 Bretthauer said that the floods have offered perfect conditions for egg laying, resulting in masses of mosquito offspring.

People living around the area or visiting should be prepared, Bretthauer said. He suggested, for instance, wearing loose-fitting and long clothing.

Timing also plays a role when you’re outside. “They tend to bite during twilight hours when the temperature is higher than 18C,” he said. 

Mosquitos ‘not a bad thing for wildlife’

While growing mosquito hoards may ruin peoples’ camping trips and planned lake vacations, for local wildlife, the mosquitos are a good thing, according to the Nature and Biodiversity Conservation Union (Nabu).

“All the insects that are now developing are a very important food source for many fish species and also for birds,” said Eberhard Klein from Nabu in Constance.

Around 50 species of mosquitoes are known in Germany. Some of them are counted among the so-called floodwater mosquitoes, which increasingly hatch after flooding.

According to experts, these mosquitos are particularly zealous blood hunters, as they have to reproduce quickly before the favourable conditions disappear again.

Floodwater mosquitoes like to lay their eggs on moist soil, often in riparian zones and floodplains. There they can survive in the soil for several years.

When these zones flood and the temperature is favourable, the eggs develop and hatch mosquitos. Therefore large-scale flooding, as seen recently in Southern Germany, can lead to mass hatching.

Mosquito borne illness is spreading to Europe as temperatures warm

Warming temperatures brought by human-caused climate change have allowed mosquito populations to extend further northward in Europe, including disease-carrying species that were previously limited to regions closer to the equator.

For example, the Asian tiger mosquito is not native to Europe but has already been observed in much of southern and central Europe, including Germany.

Tiger mosquitos are particularly concerning because they are known to spread diseases such as dengue fever, chikungunya and Zika virus. Mass outbreaks of these infections have been rising globally. Last year local Dengue outbreaks were recorded in France, Italy and Spain.

With reporting by DPA

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