Strike by British Airways employees cancelled

Faced with a cabin crew strike in one of the busiest times of the year, British Airways has just revealed that they have been awarded a court injunction which will effectively stop the strike. Over one million travellers who would have been affected have breathed a sigh of relief on hearing the news.

The strike was to be held by over 13,000 crew members working with British Airways during the peak Christmas season. Those who voted in favour of the strike were keen on not participating in their duties.

Unite, one of the unions of British Airways’ staff involving almost 13,000 members, had voted to go on strike. However, they allowed members that were no longer a part of British Airways to join in the ballot when the vote was cast. People who had taken the voluntary redundancy packages and who were not currently working with BA were also allowed to vote. This brought the High court to declare this ballot as invalid and Unite were forced to cancel their strike.

Unite has reacted strongly against the high court injunction and responded by saying that the victory to British Airways was a disgrace to democracy. Unite was also keen on holding a new vote unless their disagreement with the airline was solved.

Had the strike taken place, British Airways would have had to ground virtually all of its flights, leading to disastrous consequences to the company. British Airways released a statement declaring that the union allowed its contempt for the airline cloud their judgment over the needs of its passengers.

The talks between the two have been deteriorating as time goes by. The union has been protesting against the changes in working conditions and pay that have been instated by the British Airways.