Can you really trust a trade union?
Willy Walsh is between a rock and a hard face- unrelenting commercial realities on one side, and a tough trade union on the other. Irrespective of the issues behind the dispute, the question is – can UNITE afford to lose this contest? The answer would appear to be “No” simply because of its much more significant battle ahead with the government who must deal with the bloated and overcompensated civil service. To show any weakness now would undermine UNITE’s position when it has to negotiate on behalf of a much larger number of its civil service members compared to the number employed by BA.
BA is a great airline and a national asset but that does not make it immune to being a sacrifice for a perceived greater cause. Anyone who thinks that a trade union would not sacrifice a company (and its entire staff) is forgetting Eastern Airlines.