British Airways settles cabin crew dispute

Airline finally ends bitter conflict with Unite union that resulted in 22 days of strikes and cost it £150m British Airways and the Unite trade union have ended one of the most rancorous industrial disputes in recent decades after cabin crew at the airline accepted a peace deal. Following 22 days of walkouts and a £150m hit to BA’s balance sheet, both sides have declared an end to nearly two years of hostilities. The agreement includes the return of staff travel perks for the thousands of crew who took part in strikes last year, but not the reversal of staff cuts that triggered the initial dispute in 2009. More than 6,500 crew backed the deal, representing a 92% majority on a 72% turnout. Len McCluskey, Unite general secretary, said: “Thankfully we have reached an honourable agreement with BA. The overwhelming acceptance of this deal by cabin crew means that both parties can now move forward together on securing a bright future for the airline.” BA said: “The skills and professionalism of British Airways cabin crew are second to none, and we are delighted this dispute is behind us.” The travel plans of hundreds of thousands of BA passengers were disrupted by the dispute, while dozens of crew were disciplined by the airline, including the sacking of senior figures at the main Unite cabin crew branch, Bassa. As part of the agreement, crew disciplined during the dispute can refer their cases to binding arbitration by Acas, the conciliation service. McCluskey said: “I hope it sends a message to employers everywhere that working with your workforce is the only way to secure productive change.” Hopes of a peace deal rose when, after a torrid 2010, there was a change of leadership at Unite and BA, with McCluskey replacing Tony Woodley and Derek Simpson, while at BA chief executive Willie Walsh, who took the top job at BA’s parent International Airlines Group, was replaced by Keith Williams. Williams admitted this month that the dispute had damaged the BA brand, having become front-page news last year as the likes of Gordon Brown joined attempts to end the stand-off. “One of the things we need to do is rebuild the brand image, which inevitably suffers during a protracted dispute,” he said. BA is preparing to launch a marketing push ahead of the Olympics, where it is a headline sponsor, emphasising a multibillion-pound investment programme that includes 12 Airbus A380 superjumbos. BA added: “We have made permanent structural savings to our business, which is now ready to invest £5.5bn over the next five years for the benefit of our customers.” British Airways Airline industry Travel & leisure Willie Walsh Unite Dan Milmo guardian.co.uk

Posted by on June 22, 2011. Filed under News, Politics, World News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.