German travel system crippled by strikes
06 March 2008Visitors to Germany had to rely on their travel insurance this week after public sector strikes caused severe disruption to the country's infrastructure.
Airport workers were among those taking industrial action, causing cancellations and delays at bases including Frankfurt, Munich, Stuttgart, Dusseldorf and Cologne.
Some 142 flights were cancelled by German national carrier Lufthansa in anticipation of the action, which involved members of the Verdi trade union and the GDP police union.
The public transport network was also affected when employees of the operator BVG went on strike.
Trams, buses and underground trains were all brought to a halt following the industrial action, which is expected to continue until at least March 14th.
The dispute is between unions and the government over low pay for public sector workers.
Frank Bsirske of the Verdi union said: "Either the public employers make an offer with clear salary increases and without increased work hours, or we will show them our strength.
"We can hold out for a very, very long time."