The Unite union has said industrial action at Heathrow is
likely after the airport reportedly put forward proposals to cut pay by nearly
a quarter for some workers.
The union, which represents more than 4,000 members directly
employed by the airport, is accusing Heathrow of pursuing a “greed, not need”
approach to making cost savings within its workforce. It claims the airport is
proposing cuts to pay and allowances as well as the closure of a salary pension
scheme in a ‘fire and rehire’ programme that would see staff placed on “inferior
contracts”.
According to Unite, some workers could lose more than £8,000
a year on a basic pay cut of 24 per cent.
In a statement, the union said: “Unite believes that the
airport is using the Covid-19 pandemic as a smokescreen to achieve its
long-held ambition to cut pay in order to increase profits in the long term.”
Unite regional coordinating officer Wayne King said: “Unite
has made proposals that pay cuts should be temporary, but Heathrow has rejected
this out of hand. The pay cuts faced by our members mean that many could lose
their homes. If, as expected, Unite members reject these huge pay cuts, we will
take whatever steps needed to protect our members’ pay.”
At the beginning of the coronavirus lockdown in the UK in
March, Heathrow said it had £3.2 billion of cash and committed facilities
available. The airport shut one of its runways and consolidated terminal
operations as a result of the downturn in passenger traffic during the
pandemic. In recent months, the company reported a loss of £471 million in the
first half of 2020, with passenger numbers still down 88 per cent in July.
Heathrow announced in June that it would start discussions
with representative unions over frontline job losses it said were necessary to
cut costs and secure the airport’s future in an environment with less passenger
demand. According to Unite, more than 800 workers agreed to a voluntary
severance scheme at the end of July.
King added: “We recognise that there are challenges for this
industry as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic, but forcing the workforce onto
the breadline is not the responsible or necessary answer to this crisis.”