BALPA may ballot members on industrial action
 

As reported by Daily Telegraph and some other print media, there appears to be a growing possibility that BALPA will ballot its BA members who feel their pay should not only be restored to pre-pandemic levels but also increased in light of rising inflation.

Telegraph I believe operates on subscription basis, but a couple of key extracts from their piece here ……

“British Airways chief executive Sean Doyle was warned during a meeting with pilot representatives last Tuesday that “only quantifiable actions… would be acceptable”, according to an email to its members last week seen by the Telegraph.

“This did not occur," the email said.British Airways pilots agreed to sacrifice a portion of their salaries to mitigate job losses in a pay deal agreed in July 2020. They accepted temporary pay cuts of 20pc, falling to 8pc over the following two years, allowing job cuts to be reduced from 1,255 to 270”.

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/business...strike-action/

Good, their pay should be restored and increased. I fully support any strike action.

The pilots did BA a favour in 2020 when BA thought it would need far fewer of them. Time has proven that BA had an advantage by retaining more pilots and where other airlines have trouble recruiting, BA are better positioned. The pay reduction was based on sustained lower demand which has not materialised, indeed most pilots are probably working to the limit of their permitted hours. Put current inflation rates into the mix and of course they want more money.

And, with the price gouging going on by Airlines right now, BA can easily afford to pay pilots more.

I am not sure how BA can justify keeping a COVID-related pay cut IMHO (not even talking about inflation related pay...). It's a shame that pilots (and other work groups at BA) seem to have to resort to threatening strike action before BA open their ears.

I really think BA is so crisis driven right now that this is just another issue "on the pile" that needs to be sorted out. We've seen with the ground staff that BA, contrary to past experience, has come back to the table with a more reasonable offer, and I assume it will also do so with the pilots. It's sad that industrial relations have to be so confrontational but it seems to be the new normal, unfortunately.

I would say it’s a fairly well-accepted fact that, for a good number of years now, BA’s general approach to negotiations with Unions representing their staff has been shaped by its very own Management Guide to Industrial Relations (author : Willie Walsh, with revisions & updates by Alex Cruz).

Pilots of course have the power to bring a total halt to any airline’s operations - and at a stroke. BA naturally need to tread very carefully here, and there can surely be little doubt that Luis Gallego would wish to stay close to ongoing developments, perhaps even becoming directly involved, given just what is at stake.

Recent settlements with other sections of the workforce indicate a realisation that the sort of regular confrontations seen during the Walsh / Cruz era can no longer be risked - particularly in a climate that has already brought significant cancellations and related disruptions. Time will tell.

Agree. I wonder though if Doyle actually has much say/influence here in these negotiations or is he just doing what he's told by Luis Gallego?

Its an odd setup for sure, not sure how much control/discretion Doyle has compared to other airline CEOs.

😔
 

I have some sympathy for all these Unionised workers fighting for better remuneration at the expense/inconvenience of the general Public and their Employers.

Could someone direct me to the OAP’s Union website, where we (the ones without any leverage) can seek more money by strike action? Or do we just form an orderly queue at the Pension Office, or the Crematorium?

Respectfully you would have had the chance to do that in your working years, much like those of us who retire later won't get the chance to strike for a higher pension when we're retirement age!

It doesn't seem like pensioners need one!

I would say if pilots managed to get their salaries uplifted every year by the same level as the triple lock, and not have their salaries reduced since 2020, they probably wouldn't now be voting on potential strike action ;)

We all feel your pain Uncle T !

And drastic times call for drastic action. It’s tough to contemplate - but you may even have to cut back from four long-haul exotics a year to just three. Or (to raise the unmentionable) could the looming crisis actually mean travelling in the back of the bus …… 😳😳 Mon Dieu !

But in all seriousness : if the claim by BALPA that BA management a) have already reneged on a firm agreement reached by both parties in good faith OR b) are showing every sign of doing so …… then it’s very very hard not to support their potential move towards strike action as a last resort.

Ok Boomer.

Maybe go back to work then? Cut down on your Daily Mail purchases? Wish I had a “triple lock”. I doubt there will even be pensions or a retirement age by the time I get there!

I'd like it if there was a way passengers could show their support for BA staff.

BA management have royally stiffed staff & passengers over the last 5 years and need a proper kicking.

As my American family would say, do you want a pity party?

Is the likelihood that the strike days would be in September? How long does the balloting process take and does BALPA have to provide two weeks notice prior to striking?