Heathrow Staff Strike Most Summer Weekends
Strike coming up! Heathrow airport security staff to walk out for 31 days over pay. Unite union behind the action.
The union says that over 2,000 officers will go on strike during weekends from June to August. The union sees this as a big deal and calls it a "major escalation".
The strikes up until now only impacted Terminal 5, which British Airways uses. But now, Terminal 3 workers have decided to join the strike, which could affect airlines such as Virgin Atlantic, Emirates, Qatar, United, American, and Delta.
Heathrow dealt with strikes before, like during Easter and May holidays, without much trouble for travelers. But this new strike could be harder to handle and test how willing other employees are to get involved.
Sharon Graham, the Unite general secretary, stated that Heathrow has been warned about ongoing strike action until its workers receive fair pay.
She complained that the airport's priorities were incorrect. The company is wealthy and expecting to make profits this summer, but the employees are not paid enough and cannot afford their daily expenses. Other airport workers are paid more than them.
Security staff said no to a pay offer of 10.1%. The union said the offer was not good because wages have decreased by 24% since 2017. This happened because new contracts were given out during the pandemic.
The Heathrow spokesperson promised that they will try their best to decrease strike problems. They also want passengers to enjoy their summer vacations without any difficulties.
Heathrow stated that Unite had already attempted to interfere with airport operations by going on unnecessary strikes during peak travel days but their efforts were unsuccessful. Heathrow is now preparing plans to ensure smooth journeys during any future strikes. In addition, they have mentioned that talks with Unite are ongoing.
The strikes are happening on 24 June, a bit after what was first decided. This is because the union didn't inform the airport as the law says, last Friday.
Airlines worry about French air traffic control strikes during the summer. Each strike makes flights detour around French airspace. Many UK departures are affected. The latest 24-hour strike ended on Wednesday morning.
