Security Workers At UK Airports Will Strike After Summer Vacations End
According to the GMB union, airport security workers plan to walk out at the end of this month if they do not receive a “meaningful offer” of pay increases.
A strike is expected to occur later this month at Leeds Bradford Airport (LBA), causing potential disruptions for thousands of tourists.
In the absence of “meaningful offers” that increase wages, GMB members will take strike action at the end of August.
Customers planning a late summer holiday or returning from abroad may experience major disruptions if there is a walkout at the Yorkshire travel hub.
With its most popular routes, including Alicante, Málaga, Dublin, and Majorca, Ryanair and Jet2 are Leeds Bradford’s leading carriers.
Many security employees cannot access discretionary and performance-related bonuses at the airport, according to GMB.
Security workers’ union calls for an immediate, substantial increase in hourly pay.
Nine out of ten people voted in favor of strikes.
Rachel Dix, the GMB official, says: “This is an amazing result, with a very high response rate. Almost half of the votes were cast within the first two days. This is an indication that our members are feeling strongly about getting their voices heard.”
They only ask for a wage that will allow them to live a decent life.
While we thank our members greatly for their patience, the discretionary performance bonuses we have offered cannot be trusted, are too late, and cannot replace an increase in basic pay.
They are not prepared to wait any longer for the respect and remuneration they deserve from their employer. Still, they are open to constructive negotiation that will pave the way to a satisfactory resolution.”
Following negotiations, refuelers at Heathrow Airport were diverted from a walkout.
Workers at Ryanair and EasyJet staged multiple days of strikes in Spain, resulting in more significant strikes on the Continent.
LBA said the strike action came “without warning and discussion.”
LBA officials said they have engaged in an open, cooperative dialogue with GMB throughout the pandemic and had not received any requests from GMB to negotiate additional salary increases before today’s industrial action.
Despite GMB’s cynicism, LBA stated that it remains committed to working with it to prevent a strike.
LBA CEO Vincent Hodder expressed disappointment at the cynical move to industrial action before requesting negotiations.
Despite the damage to the aviation industry caused by the pandemic, we have done everything we can to increase the pay of our frontline employees. We believe that a 15% pay increases are a significant improvement.
To avoid unnecessary strike action, we remain committed to working with GMB and our staff to reach an agreement.”
According to a spokesperson for LBA, salaries at LBA have increased by 11% for frontline staff and 15.6% for highly skilled security staff since February.
The report states, “Since February 1, 2022, LBA has increased total remuneration of frontline security personnel by 11.1% and more highly skilled employees by 15.6%. Two percent of these increased payments relate to company performance.”
