[Anonymous]

[Bullfrog]

Today’s newspapers report that Unite are going to recommend BA’s latest offer.

I have just been informed that Unite have cancelled putting the off to members.

Some further update would be appreciated.

[VintageKrug]

BASSA is the branch of Unite which (for the moment) represents the BA Cabin Crew for collective bargaining purposes.

Unite is the overall Union to which BASSA is aligned. Amicus is also involved, but it is less clear to me how they fit in to the wider picture.

What has happened is that both BASSA and Amicus have recommended their members reject the offer, principally because neither of their leadership teams were involved in its negotiation.

Unite, on the other hand, believes this is the best offer presently available, and has therefore recommended this offer to its membership (including BASSA members).

More information in this existing thread, where debate might be more usefully continued to avoid duplication:

http://www.businesstraveller.com/discussion/topic/-BASSA-Rejects-BA-s-Latest-Offer

[Bullfrog]

The following is reported on Sky News :

A ballot of British Airways cabin crew on resolving their long-running dispute with the airline has been suspended, Unite has announced.

Rival airlines claim to have cashed in on the ongoing dispute at BA
A vote on strike action now looks likely after members of the union refused to back a new deal put forward by the airline.
It had been hoped a breakthrough in the dispute may be on the horizon following a series of walk-outs by crew since March.
Unite had been due to ask its 11,000 members whether they wanted to accept a suggested deal, with voting expected to be held in the coming weeks.
It had been thought the offer would be recommended for acceptance by union leaders.

[Bullfrog]

Daily Telegraph

[VintageKrug]

Here is the link to the article you reference:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/travelnews/8107386/BA-dispute-fresh-strike-fears.html

I think the article seems a little confused over the difference between BASSA and Unite.

It is not clear to me that Unite itself has actually done an about turn and refused to recommend the offer.

Either way, it doesn’t really matter.

ALL London City and ALL London Gatwick flights would operate as normal in the event of strike. 100% of longhaul flights from Heathrow would operate. And “most” Heathrow shorthaul flights would operate, with at least one service per day to every destination.

The highest risk for description are domestic and shorthaul destinations, many of which are easily reached by train.

I really don’t see this strike threat having any material impact on forward bookings, or indeed having any effect on BA changing its offer.

Any strike action is no longer protected under employment legislation, and the withdrawal of labour could be a breach of contract which would result in termination; any strike action should not be undertaken lightly.

[EDIT: it does appear that it is indeed the Unite which has rescinded its recommendation.

However, this does not necessarily mean that there will be a strike ballot.

Further, there is simply no time for a strike over the Christmas period.]

[StephenLondon]

Turkeys voting for Christmas again…

I think that those crew who are so desperately unhappy at BA ought to seek new employment in another field…then, and only then might they realise what they actually have. Who knows, they may even find new employment (well, that’s IF they are able to find something else) more rewarding, stimulating, exciting and better paid.

I have no doubt there are plenty of vibrant newbies who would LOVE to fly for BA…

Jingle Bells!

[Bullfrog]

@StephenLondon

You are absolutely right .. staff that are not happy should take their moans and groans elsewhere.

[GoonerLondon]

Bassa is a branch of Unite run by BA people. Unite is a broader structure with a number of branches from many industries. Unite handled the broader negotiations and believed they had reached a conclusion with BA and prepared to put this to the vote amongst Bassa members, recommending approval.

However the Bassa leadership were not happy with this, and Unite felt they couldn’t go ahead with a ballot if the Bassa leaders were against.

What I think this shows is how badly run the union is – surely you’d want to be pretty aligned before you decided to go to a final ballot? How could they have proceeded without ensuring Bassa leaders would endorse the plan? Rubbish….

Incidentally VK, Amicus was the union that merged (in 2007) with the TGWU to form Unite. Amicus was the largest union representing private sector workers, and had brought in the MSF (manufacturing Science and finance union) – which was much more moderate and generally well run. I speak as a member, now part of the shambles that is Unite.

[Cedric_Statherby]

I think the problem is that Unite is too big. Certainly too big for the Labour Party (to whom it poses a considerable challenge as an alternative political voice on the left of centre), and now it seems too big for the management of the union itself.

If BASSA – the people who have driven this dispute – are not happy with Unite’s stance, it would be suicide for Unite to put it to a ballot. BASSA members would be faced with the choice of voting against their local leadership or voting against their overall leadership. Whatever you think of BASSA’s stance – and we all know that voices on this forum are not that sympathetic to them on the whole – this would be an impossible position and certainly not the foundation for a full resolution of the dispute.

Ultimately, that is what everyone wants. However this dispute eventually ends, it must END, with both sides accepting that the time has come to move on. Sullen cabin crew nursing a grudge and waiting for the next minor niggle to flare up into a cause celebre is in neither BA’s nor their staff’s nor BASSA’s interests. And therefore, not in ours – ie BA’s customers – either.

[VintageKrug]

I would imagine very shortly the offer will be made directly available to those no longer a member of BASSA/Unite, though of course those wanting to accept the offer would have had to resign from BASSA prior to the offer being formally made to cabin crew.

[Hippocampus]

I think the key point from today’s developments is that Unite has only suspended the ballot on the offer. It has not cancelled it entirely.

This, and the events leading to it, do show what a dysfunctional organisation Unite is and the scant regard those in the upper echelons have for the BASSA membership at large.

Whilst some BASSA followers may be salivating at the prospect of another strike, they would do well to remember that repeating an act that has only made matters worse for yourself in the hope of achieving another outcome is doomed to fail.

[BusinessTraveller]

Here is the official confirmation of the suspension of the ballot, posted on the Unite website yesterday:

BA Cabin crew ballot halted

In a statement today (Thursday) to Unite’s cabin crew members at British Airways, Tony Woodley, the union’s joint general secretary, said: “From the outset of this dispute, Unite has endeavoured, under the guidance of cabin crew representatives, to negotiate a settlement that would be acceptable to our members and address their real concerns. It has been made clear on many occasions that Unite and I personally will not under any circumstances recommend to our cabin crew members any offer that was not also recommended by our elected representatives.

“Shortly after this latest offer was negotiated, including as it does significant modifications of BA’s previous position in relation to staff travel and discipline, it was reluctantly agreed at a meeting of cabin crew representatives that it be recommended. This was in order to ensure that the offer could go out to a ballot, giving the members a chance to express their views, since British Airways had made a positive recommendation from all parts of Unite involved in the dispute a precondition for the eventual full restoration of the staff travel concessions unjustifiably withdrawn from crew who took lawful industrial action.

“Our cabin crew representatives have, on reflection, decided that they can no longer support a recommendation of this offer to the membership, even in the heavily qualified terms originally agreed, and have so advised cabin crew. Accordingly, the union will no longer make such a recommendation. Any sense that this offer is being presented to cabin crew over the heads of unwilling representatives would be deeply damaging to the union and its members above all. Our unity has been a vital source of strength throughout this dispute.

“Under these circumstances, I have suspended the ballot on the offer and will meet with all of our cabin crew representatives as a matter of urgency to consider the next steps. Our representatives will determine what course of action should be followed in order to secure an offer that can be recommended to the members, who will ultimately decide when this dispute can be settled.”

[VintageKrug]

The latest from Holley-Dolly:

Nov 12th, 2010 by admin

“And so this is Christmas
And what have you done
Another year over
A new one just begun”

-John Lennon, “Happy Xmas, War is over”

And so we are, one year after imposition and we are still very much at war with BA. Now the ballot has been “halted” we are back to where we were post Bedfont and have little choice but to initiate another ballot for industrial action as soon as legal issues are settled.

I have spoken to a lot of journalists/reporters over the last few days and they all ask me the million dollar question “what will it take to settle this dispute”? A fair question, which I tend to give 4 answers to.

The strange thing is that all 4 of my key points cost BA not a red cent, so as usual with BA this is not, was not, never has been about costs. It’s about humiliating and battering the workforce into accepting changes to their terms and conditions while along the way smashing the union by sacking, bullying and intimidating the reps using a variety of assistance whether it be the Daily Mail or US union busting companies. Once BA finally accept that they are not going to succeed in destroying us perhaps they also might like to ponder the 4 points below. Perhaps if they hadn’t banished all BASSA reps from the talks we might have got here before. They have to realise there is no point in making sweet talk with Unite or the TUC, BASSA/Amicus are the main bodies they need to talk with and agree with, no matter how much they may hate us.

These then are then just my fundamental thoughts on what would provide the basis of a deal that we would feel more comfortable presenting to you.

Firstly, there must be a complete return of staff travel with all its seniority. To accept a company have the right to punish people who legally withdraw their labour is to accept the end for trade unionism…end off. This punishment has already been in place 7 months now and, for people like Brendan Barber of the TUC to sit back and not address this fundamental attack on rights also undermines his position. (Also there must be a complete removal of any threats to remove staff travel in the future “at their sole discretion”).
Secondly, and I think this is one issue where we are nearly there – a binding and independent ACAS arbitration of all disciplinaries connected to the dispute. I’ll say no more on this for now.
Thirdly, either BA accepting those sick during strike action were genuine and redressing deduction from wages issues or accepting the matter be allowed to progress to the courts.
The removal of threats if a new negotiated facilities agreement cannot be reached within 8 weeks.

There you are in one simple paragraph, 4 no-cost measures which BA can accept which could very well unlock the door and start the beginning of the end. There are obviously other areas of concern but if BA take the above steps that will prove they are looking to genuinely solve this dispute and, in my opinion BASSA would be able to enter meaningful talks with that aim.

Will BA comply?

My gut feeling is No, the ingrain hatred of all things BASSA has rendered them almost incapable. Ever since Day 1 they have been on the offensive. I remember well when Bill Francis and James Ferran arrived in Cabin Services, Lizanne and I, in an effort to start on a positive note, invited the pair out to dinner one Friday evening and booked a table. When they arrived (late) the first thing Bill Francis said was “you can have two hours”. “Oh Dear” I thought, hardly the way to start an evening or lay a foundation on which good relationships could be established. When it soon became obvious, over our 2 hours together, that our waiter knew more about the job of cabin crew than James Ferran, it became obvious that BA were hell bent on pursuing Columbus and destruction of most of the corner stones of our agreement and were putting the people in place to achieve it. There has to be a basic philosophy change from where BA management were then and still are now. Perhaps it is impossible unless we have a change of leadership from their side. Perhaps the trenches have been dug too deep. They of course will say the same about us – we are famously dysfunctional, we can’t agree ever, we are militant Luddites etc etc. They may even believe it. However we have all been democratically elected, are (or in my case) have been crew ourselves for many years and you have continually given us a mandate to carry on doing what we are doing. As I see it they don’t have a mandate unless you count that of an Airbus captain who must forever more always remain nameless.

There I go, I hear BA management saying, “Holley, point scoring again – he can’t resist it”. Sorry it’s hard to keep anger out of all this – I have seen the hurt and despair the BA cabin crew work force are currently going through. I have seen and heard it in my own kitchen. I know crew literally too frightened to leave their rooms down route in case they get into a row with flight deck or VCC. I have heard of crew who won’t speak at their place of work for fear of being accused of bullying and harassment. I have spoken to crew who have been unfairly sacked for next to nothing who are making themselves ill and depressed. I hear of families being torn apart with divorces and life-long friendships broken never to be repaired. I see all around me the considerable stress and pain of a work force genuinely confused why a company who by and large were the best and most profitable should suddenly turn on the largest group of people who have put them there. And for what reason? Bigger profits – bigger bonuses. Yes there is anger, plenty of it – it has been nothing short of madness. But there has to be an end one day presumably, a solution and some steps back taken by both sides especially when it comes down to personal animosities. Are BA with Walsh at the helm big enough? Perhaps they just don’t want to?

I would urge BA to think seriously now, we are at another set of crossroads. Accept it is BASSA – alongside colleagues from AMICUS – who they simply have to do business with. They could start by facilitating reps to attend meetings, so bridges can start to be built or at least the bricks ordered. They could start by looking at my points above. BASSA are big enough to roll up sleeves in a serious effort to make peace but we are also equally prepared to carry on the fight if BA are not.

[StephenLondon]

Oh dear. Mr Holley is still living in a long, dark tunnel. Hmmmmm.

Was it not BASSA that failed to attend meetings, to sit in a room with Amicus and Unite staff to negotiate with BA (like every other union group at BA managed to do)?

I think Mr Holley should re-think using phrases like “we are still very much at war with BA” … I find this shocking, pathetic and sad. When will he realise that he has managed to ruin his own career, his union, and countless other lives? No wonder people are weeping in his kitchen, divorcing and no longer speaking to one another – they followed him over the edge and now are wondering what to do. No worries, Mr Holley is still collecting his BASSA subs (as he announced, thru Dec 2011). He still has funds to enjoy life – what about those crew whose lives he has ruined?

Time to go, Mr Holley. Move over so someone who has less of a personal axe to grind with BA can settle this lunacy once and for all…

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