The Lufthansa Group says its plans to hire around 4,500 new staff this year with around 1,500 open flight attendant vacancies across the group’s airlines including a significant number at SWISS and the mainline Lufthansa brand. Unfortunately, the recruitment frenzy won’t be replicated at all of the group’s brands with both Brussels Airlines and Eurowings imposing a hiring freeze for the foreseeable future.
“Our most important competitive advantage lies in our employees, who give their best for our customers and our company every day with their dedication and skills,” explained Michael Niggemann, Lufthansa’s new head of Human Resources.
Niggemann replaced Dr Bettina Volkens who left the company on New Year’s Eve as an ongoing industrial dispute with flight attendants in its home market rages on. It’s suspected Volkens was ousted from her role after she orchestrated a temporary peace deal with the main cabin crew union in the country.
The majority of vacancies waiting to be filled over the next 12-months are for ground-based employees but at least 1,300 flight attendants will also be hired throughout 2020. Around 500 flight attendants will be hired at SWISS in a previously announced expansion that will see the airline take delivery of two Boeing 777-300 aircraft.
According to SWISS, each 777-300 will generate jobs for around 120 flight attendants, 25 pilots and 10 engineers.
Meanwhile, the core Lufthansa brand will hire approximately 450 flight attendants for its Munich base and 40 new hires will join Lufthansa’s CityLine operation.
Despite the current industrial unrest, competition is set to be incredibly fierce. Last year, the official Lufthansa Group recruitment website received over 190,000 applications for a variety of roles across the business.
While Eurowings is currently hiring new flight attendants, the low-cost subsidiary intends to impose a hiring freeze for the remainder of the year. Brussels Airlines also plans a similar cost-cutting initiative. Throughout the year, Austrian Airlines will also reduce its overall headcount in a previously announced plan to reduce costs.
Further information about all the available vacancies can be found on the official Lufthansa recruitment website here.
