In Germany, pilots strike against airline giants Lufthansa and Eurowings
Around 30,000 members of two German trade unions representing pilots and flight attendants are continuing their strike against Lufthansa and Eurowings until Friday after failing to strike a deal earlier this week, causing hundreds of flight cancellations.
Disagreements over retirement and transitional benefits, compensation and working conditions persist following the Vereinigung Cockpit and Unabhängige Flugbegleiter Organisation unions’ strike on Monday and Tuesday. VC President Andreas Pinheiro said on Tuesday that the first two days of the strike did not alter Lufthansa’s position.
“Neither Lufthansa nor Lufthansa Cargo has presented an offer regarding the company pension plan, nor is there a viable offer from Lufthansa CityLine for a new collective wage agreement or from Eurowings regarding the company pension plan,” Pinheiro said in a press release.
Lufthansa specified that flights for Eurowings’ sister company, Eurowings Europe, are not impacted by the strike. VC added that its pilots will continue to fly to countries in the Middle East, including Iraq, Israel and Saudi Arabia, due to ongoing conflicts in the region.
“Lufthansa and Eurowings are working intensively to keep the impact on passengers as low as possible,” the Lufthansa Group wrote in a Thursday statement. “We are trying to have as many flights as possible operated by other airlines within the Lufthansa Group and by partner airlines.”
Roughly 100,000 passengers were affected on Monday alone, when around 800 flights were canceled.
In Argentina, gov’t secures $1 billion disbursement from IMF
Argentina received a $1 billion disbursement from the International Monetary Fund on Wednesday to pay old debts, stabilize its economy and rebuild participation in foreign markets — part of a $20 billion program the country secured last year.
The IMF — a global organization that aims to promote economic growth and stability in its 191 member countries — has signed 23 deals with Argentina since 2001 intended to pull the country out of an economic crisis sparked by a massive banking collapse in 1998. If the IMF’s executive board approves the disbursement, the funds will be used to continue the expansion of the country’s foreign reserves.
“This agreement is a very important step in consolidating the macroeconomic stability we have been working on these two years, and it will contribute to strengthening the economic growth of our country,” Economy Minister Luis Caputo said.
In recent months, the IMF pointed to the Central Bank of Argentina’s reserve buffers as a sign of a growing economy. The country purchased $5.5 billion as of April — rolling over U.S. dollar debt by using locally governed, dollar-denominated bonds, selling state-owned assets and securing funding through central bank repo agreements and external borrowing.
“IMF staff welcomes the strong and constructive engagement with the authorities and their continued commitment to the program, including the implementation of corrective measures to address earlier setbacks,” the Fund said.
This is the second review of the $20 billion-deal Argentina struck with the IMF last year, adding to the $45 billion the country received under former President Mauricio Macri. Many citizens, however, don’t support the new deal, saying that the government’s two decades of IMF policies are to blame for persistent economic issues.
“I don’t like it,” Maria Del Valle Romano, a 68-year-old retiree said. “When Macri was in government, he already went into debt for I don’t know how many billions, now this one for another bunch of billions. How much more debt is this president going to get us into?”
In Spain, migrants granted amnesty from gov’t
Spanish officials on Tuesday granted final approval to a migrant amnesty program announced in January, allowing hundreds of thousands of migrants in the country to apply for legal status under what Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez calls “an act of justice and a necessity.”
Immigrants who arrived in Spain before Jan. 1 and have proof that they have been living in the country for at least five months are eligible for a one-year residency and work permit, assuming they have no previous criminal record. According to government estimates, roughly half a million people living without authorization in Spain could be eligible under the new program.
“Our prosperity is demonstrably linked to our management of migration and the contributions of foreign workers,” Migration Minister Elma Saiz said. “Their contribution allows us to grow economically, generate employment and wealth, and maintain our welfare system.”
Leader of the opposition People’s Party Alberto Nez Feijo called the legislation “inhumane, unfair, unsafe, and unsustainable,” although his party participated in two legalizations of migrants in the 2000s.
Migration Policy Institute Europe deputy director Jasmijn Slootjes noted that the program was partially motivated by Spain’s declining fertility rate, which has raised concerns over future labor shortages.
“There were a lot of skill shortages, labor shortages and de facto a lot of irregular migrants are working, although in informal work,” Slootjes said. “And through regularizing you can get more tax payments, and better matching to their skills because people can actually work at their skill level. So it’s a very pragmatic approach.”
Contact Justin Yen at [email protected].