Virgin surprised by crew’s CAC move

The union AEEU has appealed to the Central Arbitration Committee after airline Virgin refused to grant cabin crews union recognition.

A spokesman for Virgin claimed the company was surprised by the developments. He said, “We had been in talks with the AEEU since Christmas and expected to put together a joint ballot.”

In May, Virgin balloted 6,000 employees on recognition. The company claimed that only a third of staff backed recognition ñ it requires 40 per cent of those voting ñ but Virgin refused to release details of the results.

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The AEEU believes at least half of Virgin’s 3,000 cabin crew are union members. Roger Maskill, AEEU national officer for airlines, said, “Virgin should take its head out of the clouds and face reality. The cabin crew wants a union and we are going to get one.”

The CAC will rule on the claim this month.