Bank holiday airport chaos looms

Published on Thursday 19 August 2004 03:05

BRITISH Airways passengers have had the prospect of further bank holiday travel misery heaped upon them after the airline’s main union announced staff would stage a 24-hour strike over pay.

The Transport and General Workers Union (TGWU) named Friday, 27 August for the walkout, which could disrupt flights over the whole weekend and leave up to 100,000 passengers stranded.

The GMB, which covers 2,600 BA check-in staff, has already announced a one day strike over the August bank holiday weekend.

It is expected to announce today whether it will call its members out on strike on the same day as the TGWU.

The TGWU said the action would hit Edinburgh and Glasgow airports, along with Heathrow, Gatwick, Birmingham and Manchester. The TGWU, which represents 8,600 BA workers, said 84 per cent of baggage handlers and 66 per cent of check-in staff had backed in a ballot, with a turnout of over 60 per cent.

Brendan Gold, the TGWU’s chief negotiator, said: "Taking strike action is always a last resort but the consistent failure by BA to address the issues seriously has led to our people feeling they have no alternative."

BA called for the unions to hold new ballots after making a new offer on Tuesday, of an extra 1,000 in return for cuts in absenteeism.

Mike Street, BA’s operations director, said: "This vote was based on an offer which has since been substantially improved. It would be absurd for the unions to go ahead with a strike on the basis of an old offer."

Mr Gold said the offer was "a step in the right direction" but the union would not accept a pay rise linked to sickness absence.

BA has offered an 8.5 per cent pay increase over three years. It said the unions’ claim amounted to a 14.5 per cent increase, which it could not afford.

Meanwhile, the Rail Maritime and Transport union will announce strike dates at Eurostar later this week after members voted by 82 to 37 for action in a dispute over equal pay.

Eurostar said services would not be affected.

The union is complaining about pay differentials of around 4,000 between customer service and other staff based at Ashford in Kent and Waterloo in London.