Interesting viewpoint Baggersup. I'm just wondering if this is actually an attempt by Tony Woodley to show BASSA how out of step they are.
I don't know the history behind the other branches of Unite who operate at BA. If they are all ex-TGWU folk, then they will have a degree of alliegance towards Woodley as he was their GS. If they are ex Amicus, it may prove more difficult.
If the reps all turn round and point out that they have had no problems with BA and maybe it's the BASSA leadership who are the cause of friction, then Woodley can use that to push BASSA to accept a deal. Moreover, it allows the other reps to give the BASSA exec a hard time. The non-cabin crew areas must be pretty hacked off if they are losing members because of staff's disgust with BASSA. So it could be an opportunity for administering a quiet kicking to BASSA.
The only other thought I had was that for cabin crew to win this dispute, Unite need to be able to bring the airline to a standstill. They clearly can't do that by calling out just cabin crew as has been evidenced by recent attempts. They need to find a cause that is a) new and b) sufficiently emotive to get the support of all union members. The suggestion that BA is actively trying to remove union recognition from a chunk of the workforce is about the only game Woodley has to play with. It's a charge which is pretty flimsy, as is the suggestion that if BA could achieve this with cabin crew, other areas would not be safe. Because it is so weak I come back to my initial hypothesis, that Woodley wants the reps to see the whole thing as a bit of a farce and turn their guns on BASSA. That means he can tell them to stop messing around and settle. Bear in mind that Wille Walsh has said all along that if it were purely up to himself and Tony Woodley, this whole deal would have been settled ages ago, it's the fact that BASSA have the power of veto over any deal drawn up by them that has protracted things