AVIATION/ BA FACES CABIN CREW STRIKE

BRITISH AIRWAYS cabin crew have voted overwhelmingly in favor of strike action in a dispute over job cuts and changes to staff contracts. The strikes are set to begin on December 22 and run until  January 2. Cabin crew voted by 9 to 1 in favor of the strike action, with an 80% turnout. BA's chief executive Willie Walsh said the decision was "cynical" and betrayed "a lack of concern for our customers, our business and other employees". Len McCluskey, assistant general secretary of the Unite union, said: "It goes without saying that we have taken this decision to disrupt passengers and customers over the Christmas period with a heavy heart." He stressed that the union was keen to continue negotiations. "We will wait, ready to meet, anytime, anywhere, 24 hours a day, to try to see if we can resolve the dispute." Walsh said the company would be doing everything it could to limit the effect of the strike action. "We are going to look at all our options to minimize disruption; operational, legal and industrial relations options," he said. BA offered passengers who are booked to travel during the strike period, or 48 hours either side of it, the chance to rebook their flights at no extra cost. Walsh said he had told the Unite union he was available for talks, but was uncompromising on the central issue of the dispute. "The changes that we introduced in the middle of November will not be reversed. Those changes enabled us to offer voluntary redundancy to 1,000 cabin crew and those people have left the business." Unions are unhappy about job cuts and changes to staff contracts, which they say they have not been consulted on. BA has reduced the number of cabin crew from 15 to 14 on all long-haul flights, and has frozen pay for 2 years. Unite said that the cuts involved imposing "significant contractual changes" on cabin crew employees, resulting in extended working hours, and reduced wages for new starters. BA says it urgently needs to cut costs to ride out its dire financial situation. Last month it revealed it had lost £292m in the 1st half of the year, the worst period in its history, and said it would have to cut a further 1200 staff.