A responsible employer

Airport stands for fair employment

With 8,610 employees ¹⁾ we are the second-biggest employer on the airport campus, after Deutsche Lufthansa AG. This has an impact on the region: The Freising employment agency district, which also includes the districts of Dachau, Ebersberg, and Erding, has one of the lowest unemployment rates in Germany, averaging 2.2 percent. By comparison, the unemployment rate nationwide fell by 0.4 percent to 5.3 percent. As the 2021 employment survey revealed, almost one in four jobs subject to social insurance contributions in the Freising and Erding districts was located at the airport. At 95 percent, the very high proportion of employees with traditional employment and training contracts remains unchanged.
 

Diversity in the working world

Munich Airport benefits from the diversity of its workforce. We respect all of our employees – regardless of age, sex or gender, nationality, cultural background, sexual orientation, and worldview – and take their different interests and needs into account. As a signatory to the German Charta der Vielfalt, we are committed to a prejudice-free working environment and clearly advocate for equal opportunities. In 2022, the LGBTQ+ initiative «Queerport» resumed its work after a pandemic-related hiatus. The group engages with community organizations and internationally operating companies at network meetings and stands for openness and tolerance.

All company employees make a valuable contribution, provided they are employed in accordance with their resources and skills. Our inclusion officers are committed to the equal rights and social inclusion of employees with disabilities or health restrictions. Prevention, rehabilitation, and accessibility are just as important here as modern, healthy, inclusive, and attractive working conditions. More than seven percent of our employees have disabilities, and their integration is important to us.

Female quota
Charta der Vielfalt – Diversity Charter
 

Collective pay scale: using judgment to emerge from the Corona crisis

As a member of the regional public employers’ association, Flughafen München GmbH (FMG) operates in accordance with the collective pay scale agreement for public sector employees (TVöD). FMG employees receive a company retirement provision, which is governed by the pay scale agreement and covered by the Bavarian supplementary pension fund for public sector employers. In view of the Corona crisis, the collective bargaining partners have negotiated a nationwide emergency collective agreement for airports, retroactive to September 1, 2020. It includes, among other things, a reduction in working hours and remuneration by a maximum of six percent – depending on traffic trends and the company’s economic situation. Under the agreement, no compulsory redundancies will be made until the end of the term of the agreement, up to a maximum of December 31, 2023.

To mitigate the sharp rise in the cost of living, we have launched three relief packages that go beyond the collective wage agreement, despite the ongoing strained economic situation: The company regulation to reduce working hours and thus pay at FMG and AeroGround (AE) has been suspended. Furthermore, the travel allowance was increased to 17 cents per mile from May to December 2022 and again from January to June 2023. As of June 2022, an early pay increase of 1.4 percent, with a minimum of 50 euros, went into effect. The second 1.8 percent increase was brought forward to August 2022. FMG and AE employees in pay groups 1–8 receive a monthly, tax-free and social security-free bridge allowance, resulting in a higher net salary. This measure will apply retroactively from January 1, 2023. It will be paid on a voluntary basis until the implementation of the collective pay increase in the TVöD.

In April 2023, the regional public employers’ association and the federal government reached an agreement with the trade unions ver.di, dbb beamtenbund, und tarifunion on a new collective agreement. The resulting wage increases amount to between 340 and 600 euros per month, depending on the classification.
 

Occupational health and safety: an important part of the company culture

We are actively working to counter health and workplace risks. There are defined indicators for systematically monitoring occupational health and safety, which are analyzed on an ongoing basis. Many initiatives are aimed at maintaining or improving the employability of employees. The additional company benefits for a healthy work-life balance range from occupational medicine and employee catering to to advice for people living in difficult circumstances.

Prevention as a health strategy

Health care services that require in-person attendance remained limited in 2022 due to Corona. Together with the German Pension Insurance, however, the «RV Fit Prevention Program» was able to be continued. Employees have the choice between two variants: The «RV Fit BETSI» focuses on exercise, while the «RV Fit Energie vital» focuses on stress management. Since 2021, digital training has also been possible via an app.

Facilitating reintegration

Our company integration management (BEM) supports all employees in restoring, advancing, or maintaining their ability to work and be employed. BEM is offered to all FMG and AeroGround employees following longer periods of incapacity for work. In June 2022, the BEM steering committee met for an initial evaluation workshop, which will take place once a year in the future. With the more intensive cooperation between health and safety management and the works council, as well as the further development of the IT system in the area of key figures, results have been achieved from which employees will benefit in the long term through preventive measures.

Effective protection against Corona

As part of our occupational health and safety program, we took early precautions during the Corona pandemic to limit the risk of infection at Munich Airport. As a result of declining infection rates, the Federal Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs has repealed the Corona Occupational Safety and Health Ordinance effective February 2, 2023. This removes the obligation for companies to implement hygiene concepts or to provide free testing opportunities.

With ergonomics to robot-based baggage unloading

In 2021, the Terminal 2 company joined forces with Siemens, FMG and AeroGround to launch a pilot project for automated baggage unloading in the office. By 2023, a new global prototype will be tested to show the extent to which ergonomics and process flows can be improved.

Reducing mental stress

Since July 2019, FMG and AeroGround have already concluded a works agreement on the identification and assessment of mental stress in the workplace as part of a risk assessment process. A scientifically validated, multi-stage screening process is now to provide information about the situation in the company. In cooperation with AOK Bayern, a survey was conducted among all FMG and AeroGround employees in summer 2022. The aim is to use the results of the survey to derive measures to reduce the psychological stresses employees experience in the workplace. Munich Airport has hereby established a structured and systematic process that will set the standard for German airports in the future.
 

Securing our future through training

Welcome aboard

With 22 apprenticeship programs and dual degree programs, we are one of the largest training companies in the region. FMG received 754 applications for the start of apprenticeships in 2022. On September 1, 2022, 83 new employees started their careers at FMG and its subsidiaries. That meant the Group had 231 young people enrolled in some form of formal training program as of December 31, 2022. The spectrum ranges from IT and technology, protection and security, business, logistics to retail and catering. At the same time, 52 young people completed their apprenticeships at FMG in the year under review. All apprentices were offered a job.

Since the 2022/2023 application process, two new bachelor’s degree programs have been added to our training portfolio: the «Bachelor of Engineering Industrial Engineering – Facility Management» and the «Bachelor of Arts/Accounting and Controlling». There was reason to celebrate at the plant fire department: Thanks to the commitment of the alliance partners Audi, Bayernoil, InfraServ, and FMG, this unique training program has now been running for ten years in Bavaria.

Many on-site events

Following the pandemic-related interruption, classroom training events were held again in 2022. The new apprentices and dual students came to the airport with their parents for Parents’ Apprentice Day. At the end of the year, a graduation ceremony was held for all FMG graduates, honoring the best in that year’s class. The Erasmus exchange could be resumed. In October, six mechatronics apprentices spent two weeks at Vienna Airport. In return, four technical apprentices from Austria visited Munich Airport. The qualification of the trainers is also important to us. For example, fundamental seminars for training officers were held again in 2022. Additional qualification measures are planned for 2023.
 

Resumption of face-to-face meetings with sister airports

International exchange programs serve the personal, professional, linguistic, and cultural development of specialists and managers as well as Munich Airport’s own corporate development. In 2022 we could once again organize face-to-face meetings with our sister airports while respecting infection and travel regulations. A short visit to the sister airport in Bangkok, Thailand, followed, as well as a small delegation’s trip to Changi, Singapore, in September 2022. We also maintained contact with sister airports through virtual conferences and meetings. The CEOs exchanged views in so-called »CEO Talks« and »CCO Chats«. In addition, experts discussed specific topics and projects. 2023, we would like to further intensify this exchange. Only the partnership with Moscow Domodedovo Airport is currently dormant.

Sister Airports
 

Airport Academy: Move to new premises

Munich Airport operates an in-house training center with just under 50 employees. The Airport Academy, which is certified in accordance with DIN ISO 9001:2015, is also a «certified training provider according to AZAV» as well as an accredited training institute of the Airports Council International (ACI). As a result of the coronavirus pandemic, qualification measures in 2022 were again scaled back to the activities required by law and critical to operations. Nonetheless, a number of face-to-face events with 15,600 participant days (2021: 9,670) were held for internal and external customers. For digital teaching and learning, the number of participants increased to 29,600 (2021: 27,400). In particular, topics from the areas of aviation and security were in demand. In the area of aircraft handling, Airport Academy relied on web-based training, webinars, and virtual reality formats, and introduced an updated Learning Management Solution with new functionalities. In the second quarter of 2023, the Airport Academy will move to a new building on the LabCampus site.

AirportAcademy (German)
 

New guiding principle for executives

In 2022, the focus of HR development measures was on executives, as their skills are a key success factor for a smooth recovery after the crisis. A new mission statement shows how leadership in the Munich Airport Group must change and what is expected of managers. At the heart of this is the so-called «leadership DNA». It describes the attitude with which managers work together with employees: appreciatively, at eye level, and trustingly. The four leadership roles of entrepreneur, structure provider, future shaper, and implementer enhance the DNA, for example through expectations of results, business acumen, and foresight. To establish this guiding principle, the first step was to introduce a structured assessment process for management performance. A suitable development program ensures skills development according to requirements and, ultimately, a continuously high level of leadership quality. For new executives, attending a program to kickstart their careers is mandatory.