http://www.timesonline.co.uk/newspap...450783,00.html
RELATIONS between easyJet and its main union for cabin crew worsened yesterday after the no-frills airline barred Amicus from a key meeting on trading.
EasyJet blocked access in protest at Amicus’s decision to tell The Times about a clash between the two sides over holiday pay, blaming the union for breaking trust between the two sides. The airline carried on the meeting with Balpa, the pilots’ union, and the T&G.
A spokesman for easyJet said: “We have been discussing the issue of holiday pay with the union and we thought their decision to make that public was not conducive to trust between us and to us sharing market-sensitive information with them.” It has suggested another meeting next month after a cooling-off period.
But Amicus is angry that it was barred at the last minute as officials were preparing to go to yesterday’s meeting. The union repeated its warning that easyJet will face legal action if it does not raise holiday pay to include regular bonus payments, which are made to cabin crew each time they fly.
At present those bonuses — called sector pay — are paid only during flying duties and not for holiday periods. The union argues that this contravenes European working-time regulations as defined by the Employment Relations Act. They say the Act stipulates that holiday pay has to take account of regular bonus and commission payments.
The union said: “We are not going to let up on this one. We are very disappointed with the company’s response today and we will resist any attempt to divide and rule the unions.”
EasyJet said that it was prepared to face employment tribunal action over the holiday pay dispute as the practice is common in the airline industry. But Amicus said that it had won a similar claim for rail maintenance workers from a consortium including Balfour Beatty and Carillion, and was confident that it would be successful with easyJet.
Cabin crew at easyJet earn an average basic salary of £12,000 but the sector pay supplements increase this to £17,000. EasyJet says that the supplements help to increase productivity among cabin crew.