British Airways Cabin Crew Vote for Strike
The results of the second ballot are in, and Unite leaders announced on Monday that the cabin crew of British Airways have voted in favor of industrial action. Although this is the second ballot, this will be the first strike to happen after the first was overturned by the High Court.
Unite and British Airways have been disputing over the changes in working practices, job cuts and pay that were introduced in November. The vote to strike comes after the union lost a court battle against the airline at the end of last week. They were arguing that the carrier’s cost cuts were in breach of workers’ contracts, as they didn’t properly discuss it with the staff first. However, British Airways argued that the changes were essential to battling the fall in demand, of which the court agreed.
This strike seems to be a big feat for the union, as they have been hampered by court rulings. United said that nearly 7,500 cabin crew out of the nearly 9,500 who entered their ballot voted to strike. Since the union represents nearly 12,000 of the airline’s staff, almost 64% favored industrial action.
The assistant general secretary of Unite, Len McCluskey, said that the cabin crew have made it clear that they feel a deep sense of injustice due to the way they are being treated by the management at British Airways. Even though there weren’t as many people to agree on the strike action this go around in comparison to the first, it’s clear that a majority of them aren’t happy with how things are going.
This seems to be the story of the airline industry right now though, as Lufthansa is having some trouble of their own. Their staff began a strike on Monday, and they have had to ground at least 800 flights. The airline is hoping to get a court injunction, as the strike is estimated to cost them £22 million a day. Meanwhile, the Cockpit union suggests that they are getting ready to lengthen the already 4-day strike.