Union to discuss strike dates after BA talks fail
11.03.10
British Airways faces a strike by its flight attendants after protracted talks with union leaders failed to secure a resolution. Union officials have yet to announce a timetable for industrial action, although they said no further discussions were planned. BA has been preparing for disruption by training 1000 other staff to act as emergency cabin crew and preparing to lease up to 23 fully staffed aircraft with replacement crews.
Unite union leaders, who represent the vast majority of BA's 12,000 cabin crew will meet later today to decide whether to call strike dates after talks over jobs, pay and changes to working conditions broke down without agreement yesterday. The TUC, which has been hosting the discussions, said that no deal had been reached, and no further talks have been scheduled to take place, making it increasingly likely that strike dates will be announced.
If it goes ahead with strike action, the union must announce the strike dates by Monday 15 March - the day when the union's mandate for industrial action runs out. However, an aviation analyst and former BA employee told the BBC that BA had up to 7,000 crew (including the 1000 newly trained and those that will not strike) to work on aircraft, and was also preparing to allow other airlines to fly BA passengers in order to minimise disruption. He said: ‘With 7,000 crew ready to work the strike cannot be as effective as Unite would like it to be.'
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