Pilots at Lufthansa to start 35-hour strike Monday
Source: AP-Excite
BERLIN (AP) — A union representing Lufthansa's pilots has announced a new 35-hour strike against the airline's short-haul fleet starting Monday, the latest in a string of walkouts over retirement benefits.
The Vereinigung Cockpit union said the strike targeting Lufthansa's Airbus A320, Boeing 737 and Embraer fleet will start mid-Monday and end at midnight local time Tuesday.
The two sides are fighting over the pilots' demand that Lufthansa keep paying a transition payment for those wanting to retire early. The airline, facing tough competition from budget airlines and major Gulf carriers, wants to cut those payments.
The Lufthansa strike will start hours after train drivers at Germany's national railway end a two-day walkout in an unrelated pay dispute. Their union says it won't strike again for the next week.
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