Lufthansa pilots threaten eighth strike, train drivers stoppage strands millions

By Harro Ten Wolde and Madeline Chambers FRANKFURT/BERLIN (Reuters) - A German pilots' union called for an eighth strike at Lufthansa on Monday and Tuesday adding to travelers' misery after millions were left stranded by a weekend-long train drivers' stoppage over pay and negotiation rights. Both hit at the start of a week-long, half-term holidays in nearly half of Germany's 16 federal states. German pilots' union Vereinigung Cockpit (VC) said on Sunday the strike would last from 0700 ET on Monday until 1759 ET on Tuesday and will halt all short and mid-length flights from Germany. Lufthansa's low-cost unit Germanwings is not affected. If it goes ahead it will be the eighth this year at Lufthansa as a dispute over an early retirement scheme drags on. The strikes are hampering Lufthansa in its efforts to expand low-cost operations that will allow them to compete more effectively with budget carriers such as Ryanair and easyJet on short-haul European routes. VC, representing about 5,400 Lufthansa pilots, is fighting to keep a scheme that allows pilots to retire at the age of 55 and still receive up to 60 percent of their pay before regular pension payments start at 65. The union has proposed a plan to cover the costs of the scheme. Management, under pressure to reduce costs, has offered to keep the pension scheme for employees who joined the company before this year, but wants to increase the earliest possible retirement age for new recruits. "The Vereinigung Cockpit (union) is trying to turn Germany into a standstill nation," the airline said on Sunday. Meanwhile, train drivers staged a 50-hour strike - their second in a week - starting early on Saturday morning that halted two thirds of long-distance trains in a dispute over pay and negotiation rights. It will end at 4 am (0200 GMT) on Monday It left millions of passengers stranded. Although state-owned railway operator Deutsche Bahn introduced a replacement timetable to minimize disruption, only about a third of long-distance trains were running and local services were also hit. The GDL union wants a 5 percent pay rise for 20,000 drivers and a work week of 37 hours from 39. It also wants to set wage deals for around 17,000 train guards and other personnel, also among its members. Deutsche Bahn has promised normal services will resume on Monday. Head of the GDL union Claus Weselsky said there would be a week-long break before any further strikes. "I think we will talk in the next week and that we will have a break of at least seven days," he told ZDF broadcaster. (Additional reporting by Peter Maushagen; Editing by Janet Lawrence and Susan Thomas)