Lufthansa, union reach deal to end strike

BERLIN, Germany (CNN) -- Lufthansa and a trade union reached a new pay deal Friday to end a strike that had grounded flights, the German-based airline said.

Thousands of technical and catering staff represented by the ver.di trade union walked off the job Monday after the airline refused to meet their demand for a pay raise of nearly 10 percent over the next year.

The strike prompted Lufthansa to cancel flights, including several to long-distance destinations, because technical staff were unable to carry out required checks on aircraft, the airline said.

Under the new agreement, Lufthansa's 34,000 ground staff will receive a pay increase of 5.1 percent and a further increase of 2.3 percent from July 1, 2009, Lufthansa said. The employees will also receive a one-time payment of up to 2.4 percent of their annual pay.

A Lufthansa board member described the deal as "a compromise at the bearable level." Lufthansa had previously offered a 6.7-percent increase over 21 months, plus a one-time payment.

"It is certainly not painless for either side," said Stefan Lauer, a member of the executive board responsible for human resources.

Lufthansa said it will take as long as two weeks for the airline's flight timetables to normalize now that a deal had been reached because of checks and maintenance that could not be done on planes during the strike.

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