**UPDATE**
Planned strikes by British Airways cabin crew on Christmas and Boxing Day have been suspended, the Unite union has revealed.
The Unite general secretary Len McCluskey said: “Over the past four days, and indeed the past two years, this union has worked tirelessly to find a resolution to the issues causing our members concern. We now have a new offer from the company, which we will put to our members. The two-day strike over Christmas and Boxing Day is now suspended.”
British Airways cabin crew have overwhelmingly voted in favour of strikes in a row over pay.
Christmas and New Year travellers face chaos as British Airways cabin crew voted overwhelmingly in favour of walking-out in a row over pay. Unite said its members voted 4-1 in favour of strikes and the turnout in the ballot was 60%.
The dispute involves cabin crew who have joined the airline since 2010, with Unite claiming they earn less than other staff. If the strike does take place, more than 2,500 workers in British Airways’ Mixed Fleet would walk-out sometime after 21st December.
According to the union, salaries for BA Mixed Fleet employees start at just over £12,000 plus £3 an hour flying pay, despite the airline advertising pay to be between £21,000 and £25,000. Chief executive of BA’s parent company IAG, Willie Walsh, earned £6.5m in 2015, and the airline group is forecasting annual profits of €2.5bn (£2.3bn), largely driven by BA.
The news comes as Britain remains in the grip of a walkout by Southern Rail staff, resulting in travel chaos for hundreds of thousands of daily commuters. Royal Mail are also set for a 5-day walk-out lasting until Christmas Eve.
Unite said it was consulting reps over potential strike dates, with the union compelled to give British Airways seven days notice of strikes.
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