Court bars Lufthansa strike, but decision has limited effect

A court in the German city of Duesseldorf has ordered a temporarily halt to a strike by Lufthansa flight attendants, but the decision applies only in that town and only for the remaining few hours of today.
The decision by the Duesseldorf labor court granted Lufthansa's request for an injunction, saying that the strike's goals were not clearly formulated. The strike was scheduled to run through Friday.
Court spokeswoman Anke Salchow said the decision only applied today in Duesseldorf, but that Lufthansa could seek another injunction tomorrow.
The UFO flight attendant union is also striking on long-haul flights at the airlines' Frankfurt and Munich hubs today. The strike is scheduled to expand to all Lufthansa flights from Wednesday through Friday.

Company officials could not immediately be reached. Lufthansa has been able to carry out most flights but hundreds have been cancelled.
The UFO union wants to secure transition payments for its 19,000 members if they retire early, among other demands as part of its contract dispute with Lufthansa, which is trying to cut costs.
The union rejected the airline's latest offer yesterday, saying it constituted only a "minimal" improvement. UFO representatives noted today that the airline recently increased its pre-tax earnings forecast for the year. Flights operated by Lufthansa subsidiaries such as Germanwings, Swiss and Austrian Airlines won't be affected.