Frankfurt (AFP)
The German airline Lufthansa and the union of flight crews UFO agreed on Wednesday on an agreement allowing 500 million euros in savings for a group in serious difficulty.
Concluded on the eve of a decisive shareholder vote on a 9 billion euro public rescue plan, the agreement has yet to be approved by union members.
It provides for freezes of pay, early retirement, and periods of layoff for flight attendants and flight attendants, the two sides said in a joint statement.
"We want to avoid dry layoffs," said human resources director Michael Niggemann, quoted in the statement.
He saw it as an "important signal" before the extraordinary general assembly which must vote on the taking of a share of 20% by the German federal state.
Lufthansa warned that even with this aid, the drop in demand in air transport, which should be felt for several years, could force it to cut thousands of jobs.
UFO spokeswoman Nicoley Baublies said the plan signed Wednesday evening should save the jobs of 22,000 seafarers. It "provides the job security we urgently need," he said.
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