German trade union ver.di is demanding a 9.5% pay rise, or at least E350 per month more over 12 months, for Lufthansa ground staff to cushion the effects of soaring inflation, it said on Wednesday. The union, which also wants the minimum hourly wage increased to at least 13 euros from below 12 euros, negotiates for 20,000 staff at Lufthansa units including check-in, flight dispatch, logistics services and cargo. Flight attendants and pilots are separately organised. “After three years of wage sacrifice, employees have been hit particularly hard by the high inflation rate,” said ver.di Vice-Chairperson Christine Behle. The pay increase was important to keep employees and to attract new staff, she said. Germany’s most powerful union IG Metall wants to push through wage increases of between 7% and 8% for nearly 4m employees in the metal and electrical industries. Airlines and airport operators around Europe are struggling to keep their schedules amid staff shortages. Cancellations just before the start of the summer holiday season have caused widespread disruption. A first round of negotiations with Lufthansa will take place June 30, ver.di said.<br/>
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The shortest flight route between the two capitals of South Korea and Japan will be reopened next week after 27 months of closure due to the virus situation. The two governments have reached an agreement to run the Gimpo-Haneda route for eight times a week from June 29, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transportation, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism announced Wednesday. Korean Air Lines will operate the route on every Wednesday and Saturday, and Asiana Airlines on every Wednesday and Friday. Japan Airlines and All Nippon Airways will service flights twice a week, respectively. Korea and Japan will seek for further addition to the flight schedule from next month, considering demand and readiness by airliners. The Gimpo-Haneda route that links Seoul and Tokyo, the capital cities of Korea and Japan since the launch in 2003, represents the cultural exchange between the two countries. On the back of a strong demand for business trips, nearly 98% of all seats available on the route were occupied during peak season before the virus outbreak, with regular flights operated 21 times a week in 2019. The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transportation and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs discussed with their Japanese counterparts, and aviation authorities of the two countries reached a settlement over the route reopen on Tuesday. The two countries have lifted quarantine measures for overseas arrivals.<br/>
Air New Zealand has resorted to offering cash incentives of up to $1400 to entice people to work for the airline, as chronic staff shortages at airports cause travel industry turbulence. The global aviation sector is scrambling to fill thousands of jobs shed when the Covid-19 pandemic grounded flights, with delays, cancellations and lost bags frustrating travellers overseas. Air New Zealand slashed 4000 jobs during the crisis, but has since hired 3000 staff and is trying to recruit a further 1100 over the next few months. In a letter to staff obtained by RNZ, the national carrier promises to reward employees who recommend a family member or friend for airport work in areas like baggage-handling and check-in. "Refer a friend or family member and once they're successfully onboard, you will both receive $400 (gross). As an additional thank you, once the employee you recommended completes 12 months within Airports, a further $1000 (gross) will be paid to you both," the letter said. Air New Zealand chief people officer Nikki Dines said the company wanted to hire 250 airport staff in the next four months. "We're in a period of low unemployment, it's more difficult now to attract candidates, so that combination of high volumes of recruitment and a much more competitive labour market means that we wanted to go out with a really attractive offering to candidates," she said. The offer, which runs until September, is in addition to the one-off $1400 cash bonus employees received in March to reward staff who worked during the pandemic. It comes with a number of conditions - people can only refer someone if they are a New Zealand-based employee and must still be working for the airline at the time the second payment is due.<br/>