Lufthansa City Airlines and ver.di have agreed on a company pension arrangement for cockpit and cabin crew, giving about 660 employees the choice between employer-funded retirement provision and additional monthly pay. The new scheme, covering around 400 cabin employees and 260 cockpit employees, provides a 5% contribution based on individual income and is the first such individual choice model within the Lufthansa Group.
Under the agreement, City Airlines will pay the contribution, in addition to regular salaries, into a support fund. Employees who do not select the pension option can instead receive a monthly allowance equivalent to 5% of gross income, including the related social-security contributions. Taxes and employee contributions will be deducted in the usual way.
The arrangement allows employees to prioritise long-term retirement provision or immediate income, depending on their financial circumstances. Ver.di described the pension terms as significantly better for City Airlines cabin employees than those at Lufthansa CityLine, while the provision is somewhat less favourable for cockpit employees. Negotiations on other collective-bargaining issues are expected to continue.