British Airways is once again facing the possibility of strike action from its staff. In this latest development, the Unite union has revealed that it will ballot members working for British Airways as check-in agents over possible strike action. British Airways was last affected by internal strike action in September 2019, when striking pilots meant the airline operated just one flight from London on the 9th of that month.

Strikes aren’t pleasant for any airline. Whether it’s airline staff themselves or a third party such as security staff, when employees strike in the airport environment, it almost always causes disruption. The severity of the action is primarily dictated by how essential the employee’s role is and the airline’s presence at an airport. If cleaning staff were on strike in Paris, for example, the impact on British Airways would be minimal. When security staff went on strike in Germany earlier this year, no passengers could originate at Frankfurt Airport for a handful of days

Check-in staff strikes?

In a statement issued yesterday, the Unite  union revealed that it would be balloting employees that work for BA  in a check-in capacity about strike action. The union said that the vote is regarding a pay dispute, with the ballot taking place between June 7th and June 27th. Roughly 500 staff are affected by the poll, though this accounts for fewer than half of the airline’s Heathrow Airport  customer service team. Unite revealed that it would also ballot a separate group of employees to gauge their interest in strike action.

Commenting on the announcement, Unite’s General Secretary, Sharon Graham, remarked,

“British Airways used the cover of Covid to brutally cut members’ pay. BA has now reversed the pay cuts imposed on management but refuses to do this for our members. This is disgraceful. Unite will not allow our members to be treated as a second-class workforce.”

British Airways response

British Airways responded to Unite’s statement with disappointment. A spokesperson told Simple Flying that the airline had offered a 10% pay award to the implicated employees and other eligible business areas. All of these other areas reportedly took the deal. The spokesperson remarked,

“We have received notification that some of our customer service colleagues will be participating in a ballot for industrial action. This is extremely disappointing. After a deeply difficult two years which saw the airline lose more than four billion pounds, these colleagues were offered a 10% payment for this year which was rejected. Other parts of the organisation accepted the same offer acknowledging the position the business still finds itself in.”

Previous British Airways strikes

This isn’t the first time that British Airways has faced the threat of strike action over the past few years. In 2019, the airline’s operations took a massive hit in September when many pilots opted to strike over two days. As the airline was not privy to which employees would be striking,