Employees

The Lufthansa Group is a service company. The quality of the services we provide depends to a large extent on our employees, which means that their role is a very special one. Their customer and service-centred conduct guarantees Lufthansa’s growth and competitive success. The Group offers challenging tasks, good working conditions and varied opportunities for professional training and career progression. On the labour market Lufthansa is a highly respected and popular employer.

In terms of human resources the year 2008 held two very different challenges. The months of January to August were characterised firstly by efforts to attract the best new recruits and highly qualified specialists for Lufthansa, and secondly by some very difficult wage disputes. The remainder of the year was defined by the consequences of the financial crisis, which for Lufthansa widely meant a freeze in recruitment and increased efforts to cut costs.

We attach great importance to an employment policy based on partnership, as industrial action in a service company has a particularly adverse effect on customers and also on our own earnings development. This was confirmed by the strikes in summer 2008. This partnering requires firstly a stable collective bargaining structure and secondly a human resources management which respects the interests of the staff and gives priority to socially acceptable solutions in cases of conflict. Making working hours as flexible as possible, for example, contributes to this, as it enables us to respond rapidly and effectively to a deteriorating environment in times of crisis.