A Turkish aviation authority has opposed plans by other countries to hire workers from Turkey, spearheaded by Germany, which has stepped up efforts and pinned hopes on foreign workers to ease the chaos at airports brought on by a staffing shortage.
Travelers across Europe are facing especially long queues at airports this summer partly because there is not enough staff to handle the flow of passengers and the rebound in demand for travel that has bounced back with the end of most COVID-19 restrictions
The German government late last month said it would fast-track work permits and visas for several thousand foreign airport workers, mainly from Turkey, to help to ease the summer travel chaos that has frustrated holidaymakers.
Yet, Turkey’s Directorate General of Civil Aviation (SHGM) did not welcome the German plan.
“We understand that some countries want to hire you. But we ask you not to leave your strategic positions to ensure the growth of the Turkish aviation sector,” the Turkish Sabah daily cited the authority as saying in a statement.
“Employees should listen to personnel who want to quit and find practical and swift solutions,” it added.
Germany is facing a shortage of ground staff working in baggage handling and security roles at its airports.
German Airports Association (ADV) earlier this month said it had received requests for about 2,000 temporary workers from both airport operators and private ground-handling service providers.
According to government plans, most of the workers are to come from Turkey and be paid German-level wages. The state would act to expedite temporary entry, residential and employment permits.
Airport operators oppose temporary employment and seek a longer-term arrangement.
“We welcomed the German government’s decision to provide an opportunity to hire Turkish staff,” Flughafen München, which operates the Munich Airport, was cited as saying by the Turkish daily Hürriyet.
The option may ease problems in the short term but will not resolve them completely, the company said.
Lufthansa CEO Carsten Spohr has said the government’s intervention was a temporary measure to ease the strain on holidaymakers.
“It is not a long-term solution. It is up to the companies to ensure that they are attractive employers, with decent conditions and wages,” said Hubertus Heil, Germany's minister for labor, earlier this month.
