- Özgür Töre
The British Airline Pilots Association (BALPA) has given notice to British Airways that it will call on its members to strike on 9th, 10th, and 27th September 2019.
"We are extremely sorry that after many months of negotiations, based on a very fair offer, BALPA has decided on this reckless course of action," said British Airways in a statement.
BA is now making changes to its schedule. "We will do everything we can to get as many people away on their journeys as possible. However, it is likely that many of our customers will not be able to travel and we will be offering refunds and re-bookings for passengers booked on canceled flights."
- Flights on BA CityFlyer, SUN-AIR and Comair are not affected
- We are exploring options to supplement our fleet by using aircraft and crew from other airlines (wet-leasing)
- We are working with our partner airlines to schedule larger aircraft to take the maximum number of customers
BALPA said, "Over several days of ACAS talks BALPA put forward a number of packages that we believe would have resolved this dispute without a strike, and which we could have recommended to our members for acceptance prior to strike action. BA did not accept any of these packages, and it is clear following discussions with members over the last few days that BA’s most recent offer will not gain the support of anywhere near a majority of its pilots. In these circumstances, with a 93% vote in favor of taking industrial action, and with no prospect of any further meaningful talks, we have no choice but to call this action.
A day of strike action will cost BA around £40m. Three days will cost in the region of £120m. The gap between BA’s position and BALPA’s position is about £5m. Our proposal remains on the table should BA wish to reach an agreement prior to strike action.
British Airways is an extremely profitable and successful company, and pilots have been proud to play their part in that. In 2018 the company announced profits of £2bn. Over recent years BA pilots have made sacrifice after sacrifice to assist the company such as taking a pay cut, productivity increases, closing the final salary pension scheme, giving up annual leave days, a new rostering system, and reducing flying pay.
In what is British Airways’ centenary year, this will be the very first time its pilots will go on strike. They do so as a last resort and with enormous frustration at the way the business is now being run.
Our ballot is valid until January, and more dates may be announced until such time as this matter is resolved."
