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British Airways Strike Update: Sparring Sides Agree to Meet

Europe — on December 16, 2009 3:11 pm

British AirwaysOn Monday, the British Airways’ cabin crew threatened a walkout over the Christmas holiday, one of the busiest travel seasons of the year.

Since then, the higher-ups at BA have been pulling a few tricks in an attempt to avoid a work stoppage, while passengers have been struggling to rework their holiday plans at the last minute.

With the frenzy of desperate travelers trying to find flights, BA’s competitors have been laughing all the way to the bank. Keep reading to get the latest British Airways strike update.

BA pulled an emergency court injunction out of their bag of tricks on Wednesday. The airline is challenging the union’s ballot, claiming it was invalid because it included votes from workers no longer with the company. The judge said that she will give a decision Thursday afternoon at 2 p.m.

BA and union leaders have scheduled a last-ditch meeting for 3 p.m. on Thursday afternoon in an attempt to dodge the strike.

Union leaders have made it clear that they will call off the strike if BA agrees to revise its recent changes to contracts and conditions for the cabin crew. But BA has insisted that they cannot survive financially without scaling back pay and staffing.

Get additional background information with: British Airways Crew Threatens Strike for 12 Days of Christmas

The passengers are caught in the middle of this scrap. The union is on one end, “reluctantly” holding their holiday plans hostage, while BA is using the sympathy of their plight in an effort to turn people against the union.

British AirwaysWith thousands of passengers vying for last-minute seats, other airlines have been quick to cash in. Virgin Atlantic “rushed to the aid” of displaced passengers by switching to bigger planes, opening up an extra 68 seats on various flights. They also jacked up the prices on other available flights by hundreds of dollars.

The Daily Mail compares fares before and after the strike and shows that some opportunistic carriers raised prices by as much as 40 percent.

BA says they are trying to find cabin crew who might work during the strike period, but they have yet to explain how passengers may refund or change their tickets.

According to InsureMyTrip.com, most package policies cover unforeseen strikes, but it may vary by provider.

Experts seem to think that the two sides will do whatever it takes to avoid a catastrophic strike during the holiday travel season, but those booked with BA should still get in touch with the company or travel agent with whom they booked their tickets, stay tuned for updates, and prepare to make alternative plans.

If the sides cannot come to an agreement, the strike is scheduled to start on Tuesday.

By Dan Bence for PeterGreenberg.com.

Related Links: MSNBC, Daily Mail

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  • Anonymous

    I say do like the president did on August 3, 1981 when he fired the air traffic controllers who went on strike. The economy is too messed up not to hault things like this. Don’t get me wrong, unions serve a purpose, unfortunately some unions loose their way and don’t know how to handle things properly. We are all aware of how many people are out of work these days, and I’m confident someone will take over any of those positions in a heart beat. And I’m sure there are senior crew that are out of jobs right now just itching to get back to work. To the British government… step in, fire them and get people in that want to work.

  • Lynne

    I am so upset I can hardly breath. We have saved our money, purchased a non-refundable package including extra day trips etc just to have every second between now and Christmas Day filled with anxiety. How do you tell a 10 year old girl that she can’t have her Christmas present she’s been looking forward to for months. Bah Humbug….selfish, horrible, self-promoting nitwits!

  • Carrie

    It is a Sick Selfish person that would even threaten to strike and put 2 million passengers in this kind of termoil. I have not seen my son in 2 years and this threat of a strike will only prolong him getting back home. How selfish, vane and ignorant is the Union leaders that are heading this strike.. How inconsiderate.. to put others out like this for their own gain.. who do you think you are..??? You should be happy that you even have a job.. Why would you hurt so many people to get what you want..?? You selfish B@*&$%^’s Get off your high horse and learn to negotioate like adults instead of using silly playground antics.. ( If you don’t play my way I am going to pack up my marbles and go home ).. These people that are on going on strike should be ashamed of themselves.. and I hope that there are lots of Workers willing to cross the picket line and show up to work so that our loved ones can get home where they belong… I will never use BA again if my son’s arrival home is affected in anyway.. This is just wrong.. and immoral.. You are selfish individuals that should be embarrassed at your actions.. There are others ways to get what you want.. But doing this says you do not deserve more.. Hurting others to gain something for yourselves shows you have no decency or integrity…. Makes me sick..

  • ELOM

    i want to know wheather flights scheduled for 28th march are likely to be as booked.