Yes, they have walked out of T4 - but it's only CDG and AMS that's affected. Perhaps this action will make management reconsider Project Iceberg moving l/h flights (JNB and NRT think) from T4 to T1?!
So this is definitely about iARM and the dispute over ATR (not the plane, but Automated Time Reporting). This is a system whereby people swipe in and out depending on their location. This info is then fed into the iARM db, and allows for more accurate manpower planning.
Remember that the unions are walking out because of their ** fears ** that they will be asked to work split shifts. They haven't even been asked to work split shifts! Nobody has said that ARE plans for split shifts!
G Fiend, I agree with your sentiments, but not your conclusions. It's clear that your own union/management relationship is good and well run. This is certainly not the case at T1. The unions there are (sorry to use the word) militant and certainly do NOT go the extra mile. The only extra miles the T1 staff went on Friday night were those between the terminal and their home!
Finally, Kaptin, sorry to ruin a good story with facts, re "fat cats" - but there were NO management bonuses this year (they kick in at 4% profitability, the company made 3.8%); there were NONE last year; and post 9/11 the senior managers took a pay-CUT.
(Now I'm not saying there aren't perhaps too many managers, but that's another story. Before you ask, I'm not one of them: I work in a role where, and out of 1 in every 3 weeks I am on 24/7 callout for no extra pay. So don't think I don't know about making sacrifices when times are hard).
BA is a company in real need of grave restructuring (the corporate debt is well over 4000000000 pounds!) and new working practices: of which ATR is just one of many. The Engineers are going to have to get used to it under the EWS project which includes an ATR element too.
I'm not saying that these ways of working should be enforced, they should be negotiated. But if you really can't negotiate any further, you set a DATE for strike action. Even French ATC'ers manage to do this! Their anger may be directed at management, but it's the pax who feel the effect, and when passengers get hurt they don't come back.
Final thought: where are you going to strike when you haven't got a job?