Travel Tips

British Airways Strike Update: Sparring Sides Agree to Meet

Locations in this article:  London, England

British AirwaysOn Monday, the British Airways’ cabin crew threatened a walkout over the Christmas holiday, one of the busiest travel seasons of the year.

Since then, the higher-ups at BA have been pulling a few tricks in an attempt to avoid a work stoppage, while passengers have been struggling to rework their holiday plans at the last minute.

With the frenzy of desperate travelers trying to find flights, BA’s competitors have been laughing all the way to the bank. Keep reading to get the latest British Airways strike update.

BA pulled an emergency court injunction out of their bag of tricks on Wednesday. The airline is challenging the union’s ballot, claiming it was invalid because it included votes from workers no longer with the company. The judge said that she will give a decision Thursday afternoon at 2 p.m.

BA and union leaders have scheduled a last-ditch meeting for 3 p.m. on Thursday afternoon in an attempt to dodge the strike.

Union leaders have made it clear that they will call off the strike if BA agrees to revise its recent changes to contracts and conditions for the cabin crew. But BA has insisted that they cannot survive financially without scaling back pay and staffing.

Get additional background information with: British Airways Crew Threatens Strike for 12 Days of Christmas

The passengers are caught in the middle of this scrap. The union is on one end, “reluctantly” holding their holiday plans hostage, while BA is using the sympathy of their plight in an effort to turn people against the union.

British AirwaysWith thousands of passengers vying for last-minute seats, other airlines have been quick to cash in. Virgin Atlantic “rushed to the aid” of displaced passengers by switching to bigger planes, opening up an extra 68 seats on various flights. They also jacked up the prices on other available flights by hundreds of dollars.

The Daily Mail compares fares before and after the strike and shows that some opportunistic carriers raised prices by as much as 40 percent.

BA says they are trying to find cabin crew who might work during the strike period, but they have yet to explain how passengers may refund or change their tickets.

According to InsureMyTrip.com, most package policies cover unforeseen strikes, but it may vary by provider.

Experts seem to think that the two sides will do whatever it takes to avoid a catastrophic strike during the holiday travel season, but those booked with BA should still get in touch with the company or travel agent with whom they booked their tickets, stay tuned for updates, and prepare to make alternative plans.

If the sides cannot come to an agreement, the strike is scheduled to start on Tuesday.

By Dan Bence for PeterGreenberg.com.

Related Links: MSNBC, Daily Mail

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