Frankfurt airport will be closed for passengers with scheduled departures on Thursday due to a strike by security staff organised by German trade union Verdi, the airport operator said in a statement on Wednesday.
The company said in a statement:
“Fraport is asking all passengers starting their journey in Frankfurt not to come to the airport on March 7 and to contact their airline.”
Frankfurt Airport is the third largest airport in Europe, with more than a thousand flights passing through it every day. The strike by security workers will therefore disrupt air traffic both in Germany and across Europe.
This week, German train drivers will join the protesting airport workers in starting a 35-hour strike called by the GDL train drivers’ union. The union is demanding a reduction in the working week from 38 to 35 hours and a pay rise for train drivers.
In February, Lufthansa employees working in technology, logistics, freight transport and information technology at Frankfurt airport went on strike. Flights were cancelled and the strike lasted about a day.
It is the latest wave of strikes in Europe’s largest economy, where high inflation and labour shortages have complicated wage negotiations, leading to repeated strikes in the transport sector.
