British Airways strikes underway after union talks collapse
British Airways strikes underway after union talks collapse
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By Darren Estwick. |  |
Saturday, 20, Mar 2010 09:02
By Richard James.
Strike action by British Airways cabin crew is underway after talks aimed at preventing the disruption collapsed on Friday, the union Unite has confirmed.
Staff are on strike for three days from midnight last night, with further industrial action planned for later in the month.
BA chief executive Willie Walsh said it was "deeply regrettable" that the discussions had failed but urged the head of Unite to put the latest offer from the airline to its members, his staff, claiming they would accept it if given the chance.
Tony Woodley confirmed the two sides and been unable to reach an agreement, claiming yesterday's offer from BA was worse than previous proposals.
"This company does not want to negotiate and ultimately wants to go to war with this union. We will support our members on this," he said.
However, Mr Woodley said the union was still open to further talks.
Mr Walsh yesterday described the strike action as "completely unjustified" but said British Airways' contingency plans to deal with the industrial action were "robust".
BA said earlier this week 65 per cent of its passengers will fly as normal this weekend, with 1,100 flights out of a scheduled 1,950 set to be cancelled.
"Tens of thousands of BA people stand ready to serve our passengers and BA will be flying and will continue to fly through these periods of industrial action," Mr Walsh added.
Transport secretary Lord Adonis responded to the news, saying: "It is disappointing that the talks have broken down. This strike is in no one's interests and will cause major inconvenience to passengers.
"Clearly, passengers travelling in the next few days will need to check with BA on the status of their flights. I continue to urge both sides to find a negotiated settlement."
Unless an agreement can be reached in the coming days, a second four-day strike by cabin crew is also due to begin on March 27th.