BAA strike ballot opens
23 July 2010
Unite, Britain's biggest union, will begin sending out strike
ballot papers today (Friday 23 July) to over 6,000 workers at BAA
in a dispute over pay.
BAA staff already accepted a pay freeze in 2009. For this year,
the company is only offering staff a one per cent pay increase,
plus half a percent which is conditional on changes to the sickness
agreement. Staff were also offered a bonus on condition that BAA
met its EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and
amortization) targets, BAA missed its targets by only three per
cent but the company is still refusing to give staff any financial
recognition despite the company coming so close to meeting its
targets.
The union will ballot 6,185 staff including security staff,
engineers, firefighters and support staff at BAA airports including
Heathrow, Stansted, Southampton, Glasgow, Aberdeen and
Edinburgh.
Unite's national officers for civil aviation, Brendan Gold and
Brian Boyd, said: "BAA's measly pay offer is nothing short of
confrontational. Last year, staff accepted a pay freeze, their
generosity helped the company, BAA has returned the favour
with no bonus and a one per cent pay offer when inflation is
currently five per cent. Over 6,000 BAA staff will now begin
receiving ballot papers asking them if they are prepared to take
strike action.
"Unite and BAA have been in talks for months and we are prepared
to continue talking. A negotiated agreement can be reached if the
company is prepared to be fairer and more realistic.”
The company informed the union that it had failed to meet its
EBITDA target of £1.2 billion by three per cent, so would not pay
the £450 agreed as part of the 2009 settlement and there would be
no airport bonus which is normally payable each summer and worth
£700 to BAA staff.
The strike ballot will close on 12 August.
ENDS
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