Berlin Airport Workers To Strike On Tuesday

Union Verdi said walkouts at Tegel, Berlin`s main international airport, and Schoenefeld would be staged from 6 a.m. to 9:30 a.m.

Berlin's two international airports are expected to be hit by strikes lasting 3-1/2 hours on Tuesday morning as workers press demands for an eight percent pay rise, a union said.

Coming after a shorter two-hour strike on Feb 12 that had limited impact, public service sector union Verdi said walkouts at Tegel, Berlin's main international airport, and Schoenefeld would be staged from 6 a.m. to 9:30 a.m. (0500-0830 GMT).

Verdi said the strikes would cause massive disruption, but a spokesman for the Berlin airport authorities said it was uncertain how big an impact they would have. Two weeks ago the walkout caused only minor problems.

Verdi said 250 workers took part in the previous strikes at the two airports, which have a work force of 1,500. Berlin, with 21 million passengers transported per year, has Germany's third largest air traffic volume after Frankfurt and Munich.

Verdi is demanding an 8 percent raise. It says Berlin airports have offered a 1.3 percent pay rise for 2009.

The airport said it had made a 2.6-percent wage increase offer combined with a 1,250-euro ($1,593) one-off payment that would give an overall wage increase of 4.2 percent.