The Traveller's Magazine
British Airways, its cabin crew and BA passengers all let out a sigh of relief this morning when news came that after 18 months and 22 rounds of strikes, the airline and its cabin crew union had finally come to an agreement which will end the airlines longest in-house disagreement.
At last, British Airways executives and representatives from the British Airlines Stewards and Stewardesses Association came to an agreement yesterday after an entire 18 months of disputes. For many, the strikes and disruptions seemed to never end but it looks like now things have start getting back to normal.
Did you even notice that long-haul flights were understaffed for the last year and a half? Perhaps not, but those passengers flying domestic certainly did with fewer services available and hundreds of flights cancelled. Without a doubt the strikes have cost the ‘BA brand’ a lot, due to passengers seeking alternative airlines to avoid possible delays or cancellations.
Future stewards and stewardesses won’t receive the full perks of the job as employees receive that are already in place, but this is all part of the evolving airline industry. Many cabin crew feared they would lose all privileges for free or discounted flights but BA promised the travel perk would be restored after all the paperwork has been filed.
BA strike in numbers:
- Length: 18 months
- Strike days: 22 in total
- Flight cancellations: 37% of short-haul, 21% of long-haul
- Cost to BA: £150,000,000 (£7m per strike day)
- Average salary of BA cabin crew: £29,000 a year
- Average salary of Virgin Atlantic cabin crew: £13,300
- Number of Unite members: 10,000
Now that this has all been settled, flight schedules can return to normal… if anyone still remembers what ‘normal’ is after all this time. For travellers flying on British Airways, you can be sure that there won’t be any more flight disruptions. At least not as long as no volcanoes erupt…
Img: Irargerich / Flickr cc.
