BA staff threaten to walk out over bank holiday weekend
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Your support makes all the difference.Hundreds of thousands of British Airways passengers were facing travel misery over the August bank holiday weekend after unions representing staff at the airline announced a one-day strike.
Hundreds of thousands of British Airways passengers were facing travel misery over the August bank holiday weekend after unions representing staff at the airline announced a one-day strike.
The GMB, which represents thousands of check-in and other staff at the airports, said that workers would walk out on either 27, 28, 29 or 30 August unless a long-running row over pay was resolved. The strike, at airports across the country including Heathrow and Gatwick, would start at 4am and finish 24 hours later.
Many of BA's flights for the bank holiday are already full and holidaymakers would have trouble switching to other airlines because the last weekend in August is one of the busiest of the year. BA expects to carry 100,000 passengers a day over the bank holiday weekend and will face huge problems if the stoppage goes ahead.
Allan Black, the national officer of the GMB, admitted that the effects of a strike on BA and passengers would be "devastating". He said: "The GMB is preparing for war but hoping for peace. We have no interest in closing down British Airways and do not want to see the public inconvenienced."
He added: "We are doing everything we possibly can to resolve this dispute."
Mr Black will contact two other unions involved in the row today to suggest a new proposal which he plans to put forward at a meeting with BA managers later in the day.
The plan involves agreeing a pay rise for this year and continuing negotiations over wage increases for the next two years.
BA has been seeking a three-year pay deal, offering an increase of 8.5 per cent or 10.5 per cent if it does not count towards pensions.
The GMB represents more than 3,000 check-in and other BA staff at airports including Heathrow and Gatwick. The Transport and General Workers' Union will announce the result of a ballot among 8,000 of its BA members on Thursday, with officials expecting a "yes" vote for industrial action.
A BA spokesman said: "The timing of the proposed strike is very disappointing given that the August bank holiday is the busiest period of the year for us."
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