UPDATE 2-Germany braces for four-day Lufthansa strike

FRANKFURT, Feb 20 (Reuters) - Germany is bracing for a four-day strike at flagship airline Lufthansa from Monday that threatens to disrupt travel to and from Europe's biggest economy.

Lufthansa's pilots plan to go on strike in a row over pay and job security, fearing the company could try to cut staff costs by shifting jobs to foreign subsidiaries such as Austrian Airlines or Lufthansa Italia, where wages are lower.

German economy minister Peter Ramsauer demanded both parties restart negotiations to avert a strike after talks were halted on Friday.

On Saturday, the union Vereinigung Cockpit (VC) offered new negotiations this weekend to clarify 'misunderstandings', but would not drop certain demands that Lufthansa's management had requested, it said.

The company said it was prepared for new negotiations if the union did not seek undue influence on managerial decisions.

The airline has said the strike will cost it about 100 million euros ($136 million) in cash, in addition to lost ticket sales and possible damage to its reputation.

Germany's economic recovery stalled at the end of 2009, and workers are becoming increasingly concerned that they could lose their jobs. They are looking to employers for job security in exchange for concessions on pay, as carmaker Volkswagen has.

Engineering sector workers have also accepted moderate wage increases to help boost employment prospects.

'For consumers, fear of losing one's job has been a big topic in the crisis,' said Rainer Guntermann, economist at Commerzbank. 'There is the fear that you won't be able to get a new job quickly once you've lost one.'

The German pilots' move follows similar developments at rival carrier British Airways as airline staff battle to hold onto jobs in an industry battered by the global economic downturn.

A union representing BA cabin crew is re-balloting members after BA won a court ruling to prevent a strike that threatened to strand about a million passengers over Christmas. The new ballot closes on Monday.

The union lost a court bid on Friday to stop the UK airline imposing cost-cutting plans.

(Reporting by Maria Sheahan; editing by Sue Thomas) Keywords: GERMANY STRIKE/ ([e-mail]; [phone]; Reuters Messaging: [e-mail]) COPYRIGHT Copyright Thomson Reuters 2010. All rights reserved. The copying, republication or redistribution of Reuters News Content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Thomson Reuters.