Heathrow peace talks 'collapse'
 

Says the BBC...

Some good points made here. I particularly like Pax Britannica's metaphor.

Hopelessly unversed in the ways of business as I am, I feel sorry for the people whose plans were disrupted by the strikes but I can't accept that BA are blameless. If a deal is looks too good, it probably is. If you're going to sell off your staff don't you have a responsibility to ask "How are you going to treat them?"

Told you I was ignorant.

Clients of Gate Gourmet


British Airways
American Airlines
Continental Airlines
Iberia Airlines
Qantas Airlines
SAS
Thai Airways
United Airlines

How many of the others are experiencing supply problems and threats of industrial action from the unions and demands to provide the company with a better contract. You can't tell me that all the others aren't trying to get the absolute max for their money as well and really pushing the contract costs.

Red Comet That was the first post in this thread and on the BBC TV news at 22:00 BST and on the BBC website So it looks as if Rod has not won that point.

pax britanica To which WHBM nailed the reply to the mast. It might be summarised as "Oh yes they CAN be that stupid."! After 27 years in commerce (in telecommunications) and watching the outsourcing band wagon roll from 1988 in New York, I am now enjoying watching it come full circle. In recent months, many IT companies have started to change their policy on outsourcing but I won't clog this thread with details.

Charlie 32 Well, it might be but that is soley down to BA. They specify and pay. It is now apparent that BA's mistake was to try and save too much money and GG's mistake was to agree a contract for too little money.

Lou Scannon Nope!--------------------
"I tell you, we are here on Earth to fart around, and don't let anybody tell you any different." Kurt Vonnegut, Jr.

So, what else have you got for caterers in LHR. GG and LSG Skychefs? Anyone else - Cara?

LSG must be rubbing their hands together.

Don't forget GG is talking of shutting down their UK - not just LHR operations - or at least putting them all into administration.

A totally incompetent situation.

BA has agreed terms with GG, right? But these terms are conditional on GG agreeing a deal with the T&G. So BA have given a veto to the T&G. But there's a catch. The T&G has to choose - either agree a deal with GG which might not give them everything they want or see GG go into administration.

I reckon that the T&G would rather see GG burn in hell rather than walk away from its members, right or wrong. If T&G's leadership don't stand up for their members who they see as having been victimised, they will lose the next union elections.

So, no more GG. Into administration we go.

Can't split the company up because operate from one site. Any company that buys it is going to have to make redundancies and at the same time get a sustainable deal with the union. Tricky stuff. Not many would want to try this for a low margin business.

So, what to do? BA won't buy it back, not even on a temporary basis.

Dah-dah solution: employee buy out. There's got to be some management skills knocking around inside the staff. Who better to make responsible for the tough decisions that lie ahead? And who better to get the rewards (including the staff that get made redundant) if they get it right.

whattimedoweland

The important difference is that you get paid to be irritated, by ATC, LHR, no ground staff, no baggage handler, no dispatcher, no marshaller, no steps, guidance U/S, no gate, (my favourite the late inbound A/C!!) etc etc etc.

As SLF I'm paying for that service, and my contract is with BA, none of the above. Therefore it is up to BA to make sure they sort those things out, and do not just keep relying on the excuse that its nothing to do with them. IT IS!!

Taken from the BBC on line UK news, there is more of it but quote

"Hopes for fresh face-to-face talks to resolve the jobs row at Gate Gourmet have been dampened by the surprise departure of its chairman to the US.

A spokesman for Gate Gourmet told the BBC that David Siegel had returned to Texas "for a few days" and would be returning at the weekend.

The firm stressed that "informal" talks are continuing despite his absence. "

The wait continues, I hope BA are trying to do other things, why should it be held to ransome by GG. What is GG trying to do, it has an offer and surely there must be some compromise on taking back some if not all the sacked staff. BA seems has given them a better deal, are they blackmailing BA into more. I hope BA doesn't give in.

aa

Looking increasingly as if GG staff may have walked themselves right out of their jobs no matter what they thought of the conditions.

Perhaps might concentrate their minds on the fact that the company is no longer owned by BA who could be held to ransom on a regular basis and not able to fold and simply walk away.

Might also bring to their attention that there were /are other people who are quite prepared to work for the conditions they had or less. Something that occasionaly does have to be accepted in a competative market no matter how distatefull it might be.

One of the UK main TV on line news web sites yesterday said that BA were prepared to sign a deal with Gate Gourmet for the next ten years and that Gate Gourmet would be the sole catering suppliers for BA at LHR.

Surely BA could find themselves in the same situation again every year or so if this deal goes ahead.

I hope I am wrong and that it was a bit of mis-reporting. Did anyone else see it?

aa

With the 'family' bond so strongly demonstrated, together with the f you j attitude by that group of workers, that would almost garantee perrenial trouble.

What about the reported hygiene problems? Pax are going to think carefully before booking BA long haul until they feel confident that adequate testing of hygiene and food standards etc is in place.

jamesair,
having visited most of the LHR catering units over the last few years, they all have hygene problems. i would not eat the food. safer to buy a sandwich before you board. but i guess you dont know where that was made either!!.

if anybody saw package holiday undercover on TV last night, my thoughts on the standard of sandwiches and hygene in the terminals at UK airports were confirmed.
best make a carry-on at home.