Virgin Atlantic staff vote on strike

Virgin Atlantic staff have begun voting on whether to strike, with the outcome potentially spelling trauma for thousands of British holidaymakers.

Just over 3,000 cabin crew are to vote today over the proposed industrial action, which has been prompted by a pay dispute.

Should the vote for the strike, the action could begin on December 27th - the day that BAA workers are also due to strike, thus doubling the impact on British travellers.

The dispute centres on Virgin Atlantic staff's complaints that they are paid £10,000 per annum less than staff who do similar jobs for rival carriers.

Brian Boyd, national officer for aviation at Unite, the union, said: "Our members do a professional and responsible job for one of the country's highest regarded airlines and their pay should reflect this."

He added: "At the moment Virgin Atlantic's cabin crew earnings are far less than their comparators on the main business routes at British Airways and clearly this is no longer acceptable to our members."

Any strikes are likely to affect passengers travelling over the final days of December and early January.

Digg    Reddit    Facebook    Tweet This