Cabin crew at British Airways will stage a six-day walkout next month in a dispute over what has been labelled “poverty pay”.
The latest strikes, announced by Unite the Union – which represents more than 800 of BA’s mixed fleet cabin crew, will last from February 5 through February 7 and on February 9, 10 and 11.
It follows two previous bouts of industrial action, which led to the cancellation of flights.
Union members of the airline’s mix fleet cabin crew formed picket lines at Heathrow to protest earlier this month.
More than 800 cabin crew from the airline’s mixed fleet have joined Unite since the start of the dispute over ‘poverty pay’, taking the union’s membership to over 2,900.
British Airways said it flew all its passengers to their destinations during the previous strike action and vowed to repeat that in February.
A spokeswoman said the airline will reveal its contingency plans next week.
She added: “Our pay offer for mixed fleet crew is consistent with deals agreed with Unite for other British Airways colleagues. It also reflects pay awards given by other companies in the UK and will ensure that rewards for mixed fleet remain in line with those for cabin crew at our airline competitors.”
Unite national officer Oliver Richardson said: “Rather than addressing poverty pay, British Airways is spending money hand over fist on chartering in aircraft to cover striking cabin crew.
“If it can afford to waste money in such a manner then British Airways can clearly afford to address pay levels which are among the lowest in the industry.
“We would urge British Airways to wake up to the determination of our members, who contribute massively to the billions of pounds in profits the airline generates, and get around the negotiating table to resolve the dispute and avoid a further six days of costly strike action.”