Border Force staff based at London Heathrow are set to walk out for four days later this month in a move that could potentially cause disruption at the UK’s hub airport.
More than 600 members of the PCS union who carry out immigration controls and passport checks at Heathrow are due to walk out from 11-14 April as part of a dispute with the UK government over changes to rosters and shift patterns.
PCS has called the industrial action after 90 per cent of its members based at Heathrow voted in favour of strikes. The union said the proposed changes by the Home Office could result in up to 250 staff being “forced out of their jobs” by the end of April.
Fran Heathcote, general secretary of PCS, added: “Ministers have 14 days to withdraw these unfair and unnecessary proposals or our members at Heathrow will take strike action.
“Ripping up flexible working arrangements is no way to treat staff especially, as the government says, their work is critical to our nation’s security.
“If the government is serious about border security, it should look at Border Force officers’ job security, look after its staff, scrap the changes and work with us to protect jobs and working conditions.”
A Home Office spokesperson responded: "We are disappointed with the union's decision to strike. Keeping our borders secure remains our top priority.
“We have robust plans in place to avoid disruption and will deploy necessary personnel to meet demand on what we have long known will be one of the busiest travel days. We are confident in our plans to minimise the impact of this industrial action.”
Meanwhile, rail travellers in the UK are set to face more disruption to train services from later this week, as the train drivers’ union ASLEF holds its latest series of rolling strikes affecting 16 train operators starting from Friday (5 April).
The Rail Delivery Group (RDG), which represents train operators, said a revised timetable has been drawn up for strike days but warned travellers that short-notice cancellations are also likely during these periods.
“Customers are urged to check before they travel as there will be changes to services across large parts of the network, with some train operators not running any services on strike days,” said the RDG in a statement. “Customers who have to travel should expect disruption, plan ahead and check when their first and last train will depart.”