Wannabe Flyboy
22nd Sep 2004, 15:02
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/3679216.stm
Gatwick workers on weekend strike
The strikes are due to start at 0300 BST on both days
Nearly 600 Gatwick Airport baggage handlers and maintenance workers have voted to strike on Saturday in a row over workloads.
Transport and General Workers Union members employed by Servisair will also walk out on 30 September if no agreement is reached.
The dispute is also said to be over "victimisation" of a union steward.
The action comes as staff working for a refuelling company at Heathrow go on a 48-hour strike from Friday.
Union officials are meeting on Wednesday to consider their options in the Gatwick dispute and hope to resume talks with the company later, said a TGWU spokesman.
The union said industrial relations between workers and their employers at Servisair had been strained over the summer due to "increased working pressure" on baggage and cargo handlers, loaders and maintenance staff.
New working practices were introduced earlier this year which the union said had health and safety issues for its members.
Relations further deteriorated when a senior union steward was suspended pending disciplinary action, for charges which the union claims have not been properly explained.
The union also alleges the company did not follow agreed procedures in the investigation.
TGWU official Madeleine Richards said members were "determined to protect their senior steward and to ensure justice".
Just under 89% of staff voted in favour of strike action in a postal ballot.
Twenty-four hour walkouts are due to start at 0300 BST on 25 and 30 September.
The strike will affect the baggage, aircraft loading and cargo warehouse operations but plans are in place to minimise disruption, Servisair said.
A spokesman for airport operator BAA at Gatwick said the company was working with Servisair to assess the impact of the strike.
She said Servisair was one among four handling agents at the airport, albeit an important one.
"While it will have some impact on some people's journeys it's certainly not all of the operation," she added.
BAA advises passengers to stay in touch with their tour operator and airlines for updates.
Servisair is the second largest ground handler at Gatwick Airport, after British Airways.
The French-owned company serves around 30 of the airlines that fly out of Gatwick, including Easyjet, Ryanair, Delta and Continental, and charters such as Thomas Cook, Britannia, My Travel and Excell.
British Airways handles all of its flights, so none of their journeys should be affected.
Gatwick workers on weekend strike
The strikes are due to start at 0300 BST on both days
Nearly 600 Gatwick Airport baggage handlers and maintenance workers have voted to strike on Saturday in a row over workloads.
Transport and General Workers Union members employed by Servisair will also walk out on 30 September if no agreement is reached.
The dispute is also said to be over "victimisation" of a union steward.
The action comes as staff working for a refuelling company at Heathrow go on a 48-hour strike from Friday.
Union officials are meeting on Wednesday to consider their options in the Gatwick dispute and hope to resume talks with the company later, said a TGWU spokesman.
The union said industrial relations between workers and their employers at Servisair had been strained over the summer due to "increased working pressure" on baggage and cargo handlers, loaders and maintenance staff.
New working practices were introduced earlier this year which the union said had health and safety issues for its members.
Relations further deteriorated when a senior union steward was suspended pending disciplinary action, for charges which the union claims have not been properly explained.
The union also alleges the company did not follow agreed procedures in the investigation.
TGWU official Madeleine Richards said members were "determined to protect their senior steward and to ensure justice".
Just under 89% of staff voted in favour of strike action in a postal ballot.
Twenty-four hour walkouts are due to start at 0300 BST on 25 and 30 September.
The strike will affect the baggage, aircraft loading and cargo warehouse operations but plans are in place to minimise disruption, Servisair said.
A spokesman for airport operator BAA at Gatwick said the company was working with Servisair to assess the impact of the strike.
She said Servisair was one among four handling agents at the airport, albeit an important one.
"While it will have some impact on some people's journeys it's certainly not all of the operation," she added.
BAA advises passengers to stay in touch with their tour operator and airlines for updates.
Servisair is the second largest ground handler at Gatwick Airport, after British Airways.
The French-owned company serves around 30 of the airlines that fly out of Gatwick, including Easyjet, Ryanair, Delta and Continental, and charters such as Thomas Cook, Britannia, My Travel and Excell.
British Airways handles all of its flights, so none of their journeys should be affected.