Catering workers at eight UK airports including Heathrow, Gatwick and Manchester are balloting on strike action which could disrupt the onboard service of multiple airlines over Christmas.
More than 700 workers employed by dnata, who provide food for airlines at Heathrow, Gatwick, Manchester, Stansted, London City, Glasgow, Bristol and Birmingham airports, began balloting for action this week.
The workers’ union Unite accuses dnata, part of the Emirates Group, of attempting to change the terms and conditions of production line, warehouse and delivery workers without consultation.
The ballot will close on December 5, with strikes potentially scheduled over Christmas affecting airlines including easyJet, Ryanair, Tui, British Airways, Emirates, American Airlines and Air India.
The union said dnata is refusing to consult with it on changes to rostering, variable working, annualised hours, seasonal working, absence management and annual leave allocations.
Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said: “Dnata’s attempts to bypass its workers and force through damaging changes to terms and conditions will not be tolerated.
“Unite’s dnata members have their union’s full and unflinching support in fighting its attempts to impose these plans.”
Balvinder Bir, Unite national officer for aviation, warned: “Strikes would have a serious impact on major airlines and will be entirely the fault of dnata.
“There is still time for industrial action to be avoided but that will require dnata entering into meaningful negotiations with Unite about the changes it’s putting forward.”
The Emirates Group reported a record half-year profit of $2.8 billion for the six months to September today.
The group has yet to respond to a request for comment.