My day with BA
My Honoured Gentlefolk
I am an ex BA employee. I flew to MAN today for pay negotiations with my current Charter airline. I sat on the bus from X car park LGW mulling over the forthcoming meeting, when three BA crew got on. Now being a union activist, (Amicus), I was very interested to listen to the debate about the forthcoing strike, (its gonna happen, so they said). The two girls were about to be relocated to LHR, the chap was soon to be flying longhaul out of LGW, but wasn't really bothered about doing it, but didn't stop talking about it.
Now, I went through some troubling feelings and emotions on this 10 minute journey. The things I picked out of the debate were that LGW were going to strike because they were having some breakfasts taken away? and LHR were going on strike because a 10 hr duty to Houston is an unacceptably fatiguing duty with only two days off afterwards. I was puzzled why I instantly felt annoyed by the comments that were made. How dare they feel hard done by? Come and work in the rest of the UK industry and see what working is all about!!!! Then, my sensible head appeared. OK, striking for breakfast is a bit extreme, but someone really has to draw a line in the sand and say that YES, the days off after a duty where jet lag involved, is important! Who better to raise the issue to the public eye than the Flag Carrier! I have been caught in the downward spiral of constant reductions of terms and conditions and found myself almost agreeing with BA managements view. It passed after a couple of seconds, but I couldn't help feeling that joe public may not feel the same way.
The money side of things is somewhat confusing though. I left 8 years ago and when I left, LH cabin crew were paid somewhere in the region of Bill Gates and the flight deck were paid in gold, frakinscence and muur! Looking on the pilot pay scales web site, nigel/la and his/her younger brother/sister, nigel/la are paid well, but WW crew paid between £1100-£1800 clear; thats a shock. Juniors at my lot get roughly the same! However, do they have to work for it! The longest duty with positioning is about 18hrs and no crew rest. They have agreed to fit a curtain around three seats at the back of the longhaul jets, but as yet, they are still in a store room somewhere!
Anyway, we had our meeting, I had a chat with my director about my journey in the morning and we discussed why Virgin employees love Virgin and BA employees are not quite as loving to their employer. He also suggested that BA would go the way of Qantas in the not too distant.
Anyway, meeting over, back to T3 for flight back to LGW, already checked in, so straight through security, looked up at the screen, delayed for an hour!! I wish it was a one off, but generally it isn't; where the Jet2 flight is generally on time. As an airline employee, I completely understand how delays happen, (tech, weather, unacheivable schedules unless a perfect day), but it is still damn annoying, so what do the SLF feel?
I have just re-read this and I don't really know what I want to say other that I agree with why you feel the way you do, but will the majority of your flying guests feel that way? Still, you have to fight to survive and good luck to you. I will bib as I drive past the pick-nik line on the RDB outside North.