Dec 13, 2016, 11:12 pm
Last edit by: NWIFlyer
Routes to/from LGW*/LCY/STN are NOT affected. Only flights to/from LHR* are potentially affected. If you think you may be affected, post 2714 (click here) may be helpful.
*The LGW-JFK flight has seen a lot of cancellations for the current strike period.
Current strike period:
Next announced strike period:
Previous strike periods:
Routes affected:
As a possible indication, for the fifth strike period BA announced the following cancellations:
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/27910044-post2131.html as well as flights to and from Doha on all affected days (17 - 20 February).
Mixed fleet routes are listed here, though note that other (non Mixed Fleet) flights from Heathrow are also being cancelled.
Note for context in terms of how many routes might actually be affected: there are about 4000 members of MF (of which ~2,700 are Unite members and therefore eligible to take industrial action) and 15,000 total cabin crew
Background Details from BA:
Strike 19th July-1st August
2nd August-16th August
Background Details from Unite:
http://www.unitetheunion.org/news/br...ty-pay-levels/
http://www.unitetheunion.org/news/br...refuses-talks/
Latest negotiating position:
Talks at ACAS in June appear to have failed, with a further two week strike commencing 1st July announced on 16th June.
Key upcoming dates:
Ballot results for industrial action:
*The LGW-JFK flight has seen a lot of cancellations for the current strike period.
Current strike period:
- None
Next announced strike period:
Previous strike periods:
- 25th December 2016 from 00:01 for 48 hours. (Strike action was suspended following ACAS discussions and revised offer.)
- 10th & 11th January 2017
- 19th January 2017 for 72 hours until 21st January
- 5th-7th & 9th-11th February 2017
- 17th-20th February 2017
- 22nd-25th February 2017
- 3rd-9th March 2017
- 16th-19th June 2017 (suspended pending further ACAS talks)
- 1st-16th July 2017
- 19th July-1st August 2017
- 2nd-15th August 2017
- 16th-30th August 2017
Routes affected:
As a possible indication, for the fifth strike period BA announced the following cancellations:
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/27910044-post2131.html as well as flights to and from Doha on all affected days (17 - 20 February).
Mixed fleet routes are listed here, though note that other (non Mixed Fleet) flights from Heathrow are also being cancelled.
Note for context in terms of how many routes might actually be affected: there are about 4000 members of MF (of which ~2,700 are Unite members and therefore eligible to take industrial action) and 15,000 total cabin crew
Background Details from BA:
Strike 19th July-1st August
2nd August-16th August
Background Details from Unite:
http://www.unitetheunion.org/news/br...ty-pay-levels/
http://www.unitetheunion.org/news/br...refuses-talks/
Latest negotiating position:
Talks at ACAS in June appear to have failed, with a further two week strike commencing 1st July announced on 16th June.
Key upcoming dates:
- Latest negotiated position (@ 23rd Oct 2017) between BA & Unite to be balloted. Rumoured that the union is recommending acceptance.
Ballot results for industrial action:
- First ballot, November 2016: Yes 79.5%, No 20.5%
- Second ballot, December 2016: Yes 70%, No 30%
- Third ballot, March 2017: Yes 56%, No 44%, turnout 72%
BA 'Mixed Fleet' cabin crew dispute [agreement reached]
Jan 21, 2017, 2:38 pm
#1846
Join Date: Jun 2012
Location: London Heathrow
Programs: BAEC
Posts: 173
I haven't heard of many (if any) flights going with minimum crew in this second batch. Which is why there has been no reduction in F service this time. There were literally hundreds of unused crew in the last period of action so BA could be more confident of covering everything.
Yesterday they were sending mixed fleet cabin crew home early as they didn't have enough standby phones for the sheer volume of spare crew.
No EF or WW crew have covered MF flights and I'm not aware of any Gatwick crew used on these last dates either.
'All the charters' today consisted of 2 airframes operating 2 round trips each.
Yesterday they were sending mixed fleet cabin crew home early as they didn't have enough standby phones for the sheer volume of spare crew.
No EF or WW crew have covered MF flights and I'm not aware of any Gatwick crew used on these last dates either.
'All the charters' today consisted of 2 airframes operating 2 round trips each.
This is is in addition to coverage by 3 Titan Airways aircraft and one from Thomson Airways.
Word on on the street is that further dates starting 1/2 Feb will be announced early this coming week, potentially for 5 days!
Regards
D1L
Jan 21, 2017, 3:06 pm
#1847
Join Date: Jun 2009
Posts: 614
I haven't heard of many (if any) flights going with minimum crew in this second batch. Which is why there has been no reduction in F service this time. There were literally hundreds of unused crew in the last period of action so BA could be more confident of covering everything.
Yesterday they were sending mixed fleet cabin crew home early as they didn't have enough standby phones for the sheer volume of spare crew.
No EF or WW crew have covered MF flights and I'm not aware of any Gatwick crew used on these last dates either.
'All the charters' today consisted of 2 airframes operating 2 round trips each.
Yesterday they were sending mixed fleet cabin crew home early as they didn't have enough standby phones for the sheer volume of spare crew.
No EF or WW crew have covered MF flights and I'm not aware of any Gatwick crew used on these last dates either.
'All the charters' today consisted of 2 airframes operating 2 round trips each.
Jan 22, 2017, 3:22 am
#1848
Join Date: Jan 2015
Programs: BAEC Gold
Posts: 1,633
The crew agreed to fly down route as part of their conditions of contract. If they go walk about half way through the trip I don't see how BA can be responsible for the repercussions.
Going on strike down route may have increased impact, but it can only be arranged on an ad-hoc basis. I don't know when the rosters are published, but when would UNITE know who is flying which route and whether they will be going on strike or not? I assume BA know who the strikers are and would spread them out between the various routes to minimize disruption.
Going on strike down route may have increased impact, but it can only be arranged on an ad-hoc basis. I don't know when the rosters are published, but when would UNITE know who is flying which route and whether they will be going on strike or not? I assume BA know who the strikers are and would spread them out between the various routes to minimize disruption.
Jan 22, 2017, 3:36 am
#1849
Join Date: Jan 2015
Programs: BAEC Gold
Posts: 1,633
Jan 22, 2017, 6:21 am
#1850
Join Date: Jul 2011
Programs: Mucci de la Cuisine Arienne du Rseau Courte Dure de British Airways
Posts: 4,704
I haven't heard of many (if any) flights going with minimum crew in this second batch. Which is why there has been no reduction in F service this time. There were literally hundreds of unused crew in the last period of action so BA could be more confident of covering everything.
Yesterday they were sending mixed fleet cabin crew home early as they didn't have enough standby phones for the sheer volume of spare crew.
No EF or WW crew have covered MF flights and I'm not aware of any Gatwick crew used on these last dates either.
'All the charters' today consisted of 2 airframes operating 2 round trips each.
Yesterday they were sending mixed fleet cabin crew home early as they didn't have enough standby phones for the sheer volume of spare crew.
No EF or WW crew have covered MF flights and I'm not aware of any Gatwick crew used on these last dates either.
'All the charters' today consisted of 2 airframes operating 2 round trips each.
Jan 22, 2017, 6:34 am
#1851
Join Date: Mar 2014
Location: London, UK
Programs: BAEC
Posts: 2,304
Whilst I have sympathy for MF, I think BA should be rightly commended for minimising the disruption to passengers over these strikes. It looks like a combination of EF, Gatwick, charters and non-striking MF crew have made this industrial action pretty much invisible to BA's customers.
Jan 22, 2017, 7:55 am
#1852
Join Date: Aug 2012
Posts: 2,676
Whilst I have sympathy for MF, I think BA should be rightly commended for minimising the disruption to passengers over these strikes. It looks like a combination of EF, Gatwick, charters and non-striking MF crew have made this industrial action pretty much invisible to BA's customers.
To be clear - I'm not taking away from Mixed Fleet's situation here which I have full sympathy with, but from a purely management perspective - it's been impressive how BA have covered it up.
The thing I'm failing to understand is: BA appear exceptionally capable at covering a 10-20% loss in service (or at least making it seem so). Yet they appear completely incapable of (for example) - putting out new boarding procedures, rolling out Buy on Board competently, rollout out a new computer system.
How is it an operation that can change with (effectively) 7 days notice like that fail to do organisational changes?
And for Mixed Fleet - please keep it up - you're not being compensated appropriately for the jobs you do.
Jan 22, 2017, 9:53 am
#1853
Join Date: Nov 2010
Posts: 5,603
The crew agreed to fly down route as part of their conditions of contract. If they go walk about half way through the trip I don't see how BA can be responsible for the repercussions.
Going on strike down route may have increased impact, but it can only be arranged on an ad-hoc basis. I don't know when the rosters are published, but when would UNITE know who is flying which route and whether they will be going on strike or not? I assume BA know who the strikers are and would spread them out between the various routes to minimize disruption.
Going on strike down route may have increased impact, but it can only be arranged on an ad-hoc basis. I don't know when the rosters are published, but when would UNITE know who is flying which route and whether they will be going on strike or not? I assume BA know who the strikers are and would spread them out between the various routes to minimize disruption.
Jan 22, 2017, 10:32 am
#1854
Join Date: Jul 2012
Location: London
Posts: 489
I have to say - I have been impressed with the way BA management have handled this in terms of minimising the opportunities for press engagement. It's smart.
To be clear - I'm not taking away from Mixed Fleet's situation here which I have full sympathy with, but from a purely management perspective - it's been impressive how BA have covered it up.
The thing I'm failing to understand is: BA appear exceptionally capable at covering a 10-20% loss in service (or at least making it seem so). Yet they appear completely incapable of (for example) - putting out new boarding procedures, rolling out Buy on Board competently, rollout out a new computer system.
How is it an operation that can change with (effectively) 7 days notice like that fail to do organisational changes?
And for Mixed Fleet - please keep it up - you're not being compensated appropriately for the jobs you do.
To be clear - I'm not taking away from Mixed Fleet's situation here which I have full sympathy with, but from a purely management perspective - it's been impressive how BA have covered it up.
The thing I'm failing to understand is: BA appear exceptionally capable at covering a 10-20% loss in service (or at least making it seem so). Yet they appear completely incapable of (for example) - putting out new boarding procedures, rolling out Buy on Board competently, rollout out a new computer system.
How is it an operation that can change with (effectively) 7 days notice like that fail to do organisational changes?
And for Mixed Fleet - please keep it up - you're not being compensated appropriately for the jobs you do.
)I think BA operationally are very experienced - when a solution has to be found, they're normally quite good at doing it. However when a decision needs to be made over a non-operational matter, the layers of middle-management tend to disrupt that flow
Jan 22, 2017, 10:35 am
#1855
Join Date: Aug 2008
Posts: 2,071
If you strike down route and absent yourself from work I'm not convinced your employer retains that same duty of care. Which takes me back to my original assertion that this is a pointless discussion, the unions do not ask their members to strike down route.It avoids all these questions being asked and potentially answered in a very unfavourable fashion.
Jan 22, 2017, 11:47 am
#1856
Join Date: Nov 2015
Programs: CAMRA GGL (Gold Card Holder/Lifetime membership)
Posts: 727
All this crap that non union members, or other members of cabin crew have to go to work, is just that... crap:
Literally, even if you are not in the union, you are fully protected if you decide NOT to scab the strike, as per the UK law website:
https://www.gov.uk/industrial-action...ustrial-action
They probably don't want this to be widely publicised. But it is there, in black and white !!
COME ON , ALL CABIN CREW, DONT GO TO WORK! STAND UP FOR WHAT YOU KNOW IS RIGHT !!!!
Industrial action by non-union members
Non-union members who take part in legal, official industrial action have the same rights as union members not to be dismissed as a result of taking action.
Non-union members who take part in legal, official industrial action have the same rights as union members not to be dismissed as a result of taking action.
https://www.gov.uk/industrial-action...ustrial-action
They probably don't want this to be widely publicised. But it is there, in black and white !!
COME ON , ALL CABIN CREW, DONT GO TO WORK! STAND UP FOR WHAT YOU KNOW IS RIGHT !!!!
Jan 22, 2017, 12:21 pm
#1857
Community Director
Join Date: Jan 2009
Location: Norwich, UK
Programs: A3*G, BA Gold, BD Gold (in memoriam), IHG Diamond Ambassador
Posts: 8,489
Folks, please be mindful that there may well be many members of MF crew who will be reading this thread, and find themselves in an invidious position in respect of continuing to work whilst their colleagues are on strike. That is their personal choice, which they may be making for any number of perfectly sound and valid reasons, and it is not appropriate for any of us to demean them for it.
Out of deference and respect for them, it would appreciated if the use of what would be regarded as rather emotive or even offensive terms which have certain connotations in the UK be avoided. The term 'scab', in relation to UK workers, would be a good example.
Thanks for your co-operation.
NWIFlyer
Moderator - BA forum
Out of deference and respect for them, it would appreciated if the use of what would be regarded as rather emotive or even offensive terms which have certain connotations in the UK be avoided. The term 'scab', in relation to UK workers, would be a good example.
Thanks for your co-operation.
NWIFlyer
Moderator - BA forum
Jan 22, 2017, 1:51 pm
#1858
Join Date: Jan 2015
Programs: BAEC Gold
Posts: 1,633
Jan 22, 2017, 2:37 pm
#1859
Join Date: Nov 2010
Posts: 5,603
Once again please dont misquote me or put words in my mouth.
Jan 22, 2017, 3:10 pm
#1860
Join Date: Jan 2010
Posts: 7,464
I know this is off-topic, and could possibly be moved to an appropriate thread, but can you explain what you mean by a standby phone? Is it literally a phone handed to each crew member on standby? How does the standby process work?