Lufthansa sacks 103 India-based cabin crew

Lufthansa has terminated the services of 103 India-based flight attendants after they allegedly sought "job assurance" from the management while the German airlines group had offered them leave without pay option for two years,sources close to the developments said.

These employees had been working on a fixed-term contract with the airline and some of them were with the carrier for more than 15 years, the sources added. A Lufthansa spokesperson said that severe financial impact of the pandemic leaves it with no choice but to rejig the airline and as part of that "it will not be extending the fixed-term employment contracts of its Delhi-based flight attendants".

Lufthansa did not provide details on the number of flight attendants who have been terminated. According to the spokesperson, Indian cabin crew with unlimited contracts remain unaffected from restructuring as it “was able to reach individual agreements with these flight attendants”.

“Lufthansa regrets to confirm that it will not be extending the fixed-term employment contracts of its Delhi-based flight attendants. The severe financial impact of pandemic leaves Lufthansa no choice but to restructure the airline. This includes personnel-related measures in Germany, Europe as well as in India,” the statement said.

Lufthansa must take steps to secure its future, it said, adding that “since we must plan with 150 fewer aircraft in the long run (by 2025) it follows that required cabin staff in all our markets is also affected.”

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