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British Airways cabin crew strike to go ahead

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A strike by British Airways cabin crew will go ahead after talks between the airline and the Unite union collapsed. A three-day strike begins at midnight on Saturday, with a four-day strike scheduled to commence on 27 March 27. BA said 65% of passengers would reach their destination during the action. Chief executive Willie Walsh said the strike was “deeply regrettable”. Unite’s joint general secretary Tony Woodley claimed that BA “ultimately wants to go to war with this union”. Laura Lynch reports from London. Download MP3

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JEB SHARP:  I’m Jeb Sharp, this is The World.  Talks between British Airways and union officials have collapsed.  That means Britain’s biggest airline will be hit by a strike over the weekend.  The World’s Laura Lynch reports.

LAURA LYNCH:  After months of negotiations, the talking is over.  The head of the union representing cabin crews at British Airways, Tony Woodley, says the strike is on.

TONY WOODLEY:  I have said all the way through, ladies and gentlemen, this company does not want to negotiate.

LYNCH: The walk out is said to last three days.  Another four day strike is scheduled for later in the month.  British Airways says it will get most of its passengers to their destinations by using other staff and by getting ticket holders on to other airlines.  But this time around there’s another worry for the traveling public; the threat of disruption by other unions in other countries.  The International Transport Workers Federation says employees in Europe, Australia, Argentina and Jordan are among those ready to take action.  And then there are the Teamsters.  Earlier this week, union officials from Britain flew to the U.S. to meet with Teamsters representatives and they won a pledge of support from James P. Hoffa.

JAMES P. HOFFA:  We want to act in solidarity with our brothers and sisters in England and we want to be very supportive of UNITE.  We’re going t explore whatever we can do that’s legal, but most importantly, we want people to know that we give them our moral support and whatever material support we can give them.

LYNCH: What’s legal will be different in every country, but there are suggestions that ground crews may be very slow in servicing B.A. planes arriving at international airports.  Professor Harley Shaiken of the University of California at Berkeley says this is a significant event.

HARLEY SHAIKEN:  They are breaking new ground here.  It’s not the first time a union has done that, but this could be a very highly visible case in which a U.S. union supports a strike action from a union from another country.

LYNCH: The threat from unions abroad is getting attention here.  It’s one of the first questions B.A. Chief Willie Walsh faced from reporters when the talks broke down today.

MALE VOICE 1:  What about the go slow work form the other unions that have been promised in France, Germany, Australia?

WILLIE WALSH:  I have no concerns about that as I say – -

MALE VOICE 1:  You’re not concerned about passengers being delayed:

WALSH:  My contingency plans, I believe, are robust and we’re very confident that we can continue to fly our customers in comfort and that’s what we’re going to be doing now.

LYNCH: But Shaiken says even the hint of trouble at overseas airports may be enough to ensure passengers stay away from British Airways.  And he says there are good reasons why the Teamsters decided to get involved.

SHAIKEN:  Well U.S. unions, in general, the Teamsters certainly no exception, have been hit very hard by globalization related issues, by the downturn in the U.S. economy.  So there’s a sense that’s much more prevalent now for U.S. unions about reaching out to allies elsewhere in the world.  And the time to reach out isn’t when you need an ally somewhere, but when you might be able to do something to begin building a relationship.

LYNCH: With the strike going ahead, this relationship is already facing its first big test.  For The World, I’m Laura Lynch in London.

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