Strike action that had threatened to bring Heathrow airport to a standstill this summer has been called off, with British Airways employees and refuelling staff accepting new pay offers.
The BA employees, who are mostly check-in staff, will receive an 8% pay rise and a one-off bonus, while extra pay for irregular shifts will be reinstated.
More than 75% of Unite and GMB union members have accepted the new offer from the airline.
They had previously voted to strike during the summer after the airline refused to reinstate a 10% pay cut that was made during the pandemic. Unite says the new deal amounts to a 13% pay rise.
Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said: “This is a great result for our check-in members at British Airways. By standing together, they have forced a corporate giant like BA to do the right thing and restore levels of pay slashed in the pandemic.”
A BA spokesperson said the company was “delighted” that industrial action had been called off.
Meanwhile, workers employed by Aviation Fuel Services, which is responsible for refuelling planes for airlines including Virgin Atlantic, Emirates and Delta at Heathrow, have also voted to accept a 12.5% pay increase, backdated to April.
Most workers will see their basic pay rise by £4,939.21, and they will also receive an increased weekend overtime rate.
Graham said: “By standing together and refusing to back down, our members at AFS achieved a fantastic pay deal.”
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XpertHR has found that the median basic pay increase in the three months to the end of June 2022 was 4% for the third consecutive rolling quarter. This is depite inflation reaching 9.4%.
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