British Airways agrees 13.1% pay rise for its 24,000 staff after months of negotiations – but pilots are excluded from the deal
- Staff at the airline will be given the pay rise over an 18-month period
- Workforce agrees to rise after ballot and will get £1,000 one-off payment
British Airways has today agreed to give its 24,000 workforce a 13.1 percent pay rise after months of negotiations – but pilots have been excluded from the deal.
They will also get a £1,000 one-off payment after ‘overwhelmingly’ agreeing to the pay deal following a ballot.
But it is a blow for pilots who are not included in the package.
It will bring somewhat of an end to fears of a repeat of last year’s summer of chaos when holidaymakers and families shared pictures of being stuck in huge queues at London Heathrow.
Trade union Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said it had effectively reversed the cuts during the coronavirus pandemic 2020.
‘This is a sizable pay increase which has been achieved by the hard work and dedication of the union’s reps and officers, hammered out in detailed negotiations,’ she said.
‘The fact that Unite has reversed the fire and rehire cuts while also securing a large increase in pay, underlines how the union’s relentless focus on the jobs, pay and conditions of members, is delivering for workers financially.’
Only last month British Airways avoided a walkout at London Gatwick when Gatwick Ground Services (GGS), who work on a contract for the airline, agreed to a new pay deal.
Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said the deal came after reps and officers ‘hammered out detailed negotiations’. The trade union said it had effectively reversed the airline’s cuts in 2020
Queues in the security area of London Heathrow’s Terminal Three last July as families go on their summer holidays
Unite national co-ordinating officer Oliver Richardson added: ‘The British Airways deal is the latest evidence of how Unite is securing significant pay increases for workers throughout the aviation sector, and as the sector recovers, we are also securing improvements for our members’ terms and conditions.’
Airlines are keen not to see a repeat of last July’s airport chaos when families hoping to jet off for a break during the summer holidays saw their flights cancelled while also being met with huge queues at Heathrow.
Passengers shared photographs of long lines snaking outside Heathrow’s Terminal Two in the early hours of the morning, while others took pictures of hundreds of people waiting to get through security in Terminal Three.
It came following the airport introducing a cap of 100,000 daily departing passengers which was in force until early September, causing more flights to be axed.
The decision came after many passengers flying to and from the airport suffered severe disruption in recent months, with long security queues and baggage system breakdowns. There have also been photographs in recent weeks of mounting piles of lost suitcases.
The British Airways pay deal comes after the parent company of the airline made a record operating profit between January and June.
The deal comes after British Airways’ parent company announced record operating profits between January and June
International Consolidated Airlines Group (IAG) announced last month that its operating profit in the first half of 2023 reached 1.3 billion euros (£1.1 billion), up from a loss of 446 million euros (£383 million) in the same period last year.
Revenue reached 13.6 billion euros (£11.7 billion), an increase of nearly 45 percent year-on-year.
Fares were up by an average of around 9.5 percent, while fuel prices increased by 5.7 percent.
IAG added that the capacity of its flights has been restored to 94 percent of pre-pandemic levels.
British Airways has been contacted for comment
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