German airports are gripped by mass strikes, leading to the cancellation of thousands of flights and major disruptions to air traffic on Monday.
Ground handling staff at 13 air havens have suspended work as part of the action organised by the Verdi trade union. The strike will last for 24 hours and passengers are advised not to fly.
In Frankfurt more than 1170 flights were cancelled, most of the 820 scheduled flights were postponed in Munich. Airports in Hamburg, Düsseldorf, Cologne and Stuttgart have also been disrupted, with mass cancellations and delays.
The Verdi union is pushing for an eight per cent pay rise for ground handling staff, an increase in allowances for difficult working conditions, and three extra days off.
Employers consider these demands excessive, pointing to the high financial burden. However, the union does not intend to back down and continues to insist on better working conditions for employees.
Earlier, there were strikes of workers of metallurgical and electrical industry, together with them the employees of auto giants Volkswagen and BMW went on demonstrations.
