British Airways Crew Strike Disrupts Travel Plans

British Airways Plc (BA)’s Terminal 5 at London’s Heathrow Airport has been described as a “ghost town.”
British Airways Crew Strike Disrupts Travel Plans
3/21/2010
Updated:
3/22/2010
British Airways Plc (BA)’s Terminal 5 at London’s Heathrow Airport has been described as a “ghost town” by the Unite labor union with around 1,100 out of the airline’s 1,950 scheduled flights canceled during the planned three-day crew strike, which began on Saturday.

Over the last week, international solidarity of unions ranging from aviation workers in the United States, France, Spain, and Germany have pledged their support for the BA union over pay and staff cutback disputes.

Many other unions are watching the strike closely. James Hoffa, president of U.S. International Brotherhood of Teamsters, the main transport union in the United States, said in an interview with BBC that it was determined to bolster the stance of the largest airline in the U.K. and said defiantly, “Whatever we have to do, we will do.” They are yet to announce their plans to support the worldwide support for the U.K. strike action. However, a three-day strike by Air France cabin crew regarding working conditions is scheduled for March 28, which coincides with the BA walk out. A German United Service Union official said that, “We want Unite to succeed, if it emerges from these talks that something is needed at this or that airport at this or that time, we will do it.”

According to Unite, Britain’s biggest trade union, BA will only be able to fly 65 percent, or around 49,000 of its passengers during the strike action. Some reports indicate that the airline has been crippled, with almost 10,000 staff walking out since Saturday.

Passengers were notified by e-mail and phone text messages about flight delays by the company. Willie Walsh, BA’s chief executive officer, indicated that the results are better than expected with 6,000 volunteers from the company—who were not from the cabin crew department—and 1,000 stand-in flight attendants. Walsh also issued a direct apology through YouTube for the walkout, calling it a “Terrible day for BA.”

Passengers who were en route to the United States via Heathrow are likely to be stalled at the airport and be prone to lengthy delays to connecting flights back home. Travelers who have booked holiday packages could also bear losses if hotels must be canceled. Those who had bought insurance could be compensated, but depending on the company there are different disclaimers that do not cover industrial action.

This instance marks the first walkout by BA cabin crew since 1997, and follows proposed plans for a 12-day strike action over Christmas that was halted by a court injunction. The dispute arose because BA, which has 12,000 cabin crew, wants to save an annual $95.49 million to buffer the global aviation downturn and deteriorating demand, with a context of volatile fuel prices and aggressive competition from low-cost carriers.

According to Walsh, cost cutting is imperative for the company’s viability. The negotiations have turned sour over pay freezes and changing working conditions, prompting intervention from senior politicians as well as Prime Minister Gordon Brown who, “Believes that this strike is in no one’s interest and will cause unacceptable inconvenience,” according to a spokesman for the prime minister.