British Airways Cabin Crew To Strike January 10/11

British Airways cabin crew working under ‘mixed fleet’ employment terms will strike for 48 hours from January 10, the Unite union said.

Unite said the industrial action was called after mixed fleet crew rejected a British Airways pay offer before Christmas. The union said BA had “refused to extend the mandate of the strike vote to allow for talks”.

The December ballot was 79 percent in favour of strike action on a turnout of 60 percent.

The union said its members were legally required to take industrial action within 28 days of voting for it, unless British Airways agreed to an extension.

“Instead of listening to why its ‘mixed fleet’ cabin crew rejected the offer negotiated at Acas, British Airways has sought instead to try and bully a workforce of young men and women who are trying to eke out a living on poverty pay,” Unite national officer Oliver Richardson said.

The 2,500 mixed fleet crew, which make up about 15 percent of the airline’s cabin crew, earn just over GBP£12,000 (USD$14,750) plus flight pay of £3 per hour when they start, the union said.

British Airways said in a statement that it was “extremely disappointed that Unite has once again chosen to target our customers. We are looking to ensure that all of our customers, with bookings on those two days, will travel to their destinations.”

The airline said it would publish more details about contingency plans on Friday January 6.