Strike action by security officers at London’s Heathrow airport this summer could lead to queues and flight delays.
Trade union Unite has announced 31 days of walkouts between 24 June and 27 August which will affect Terminals 3 and 5 as well as campus security.
The strikes will involve over 2,000 security officers and could impact a number of airlines, including British Airways, Virgin, Emirates, Qatar, United, American and Delta.
Unite said that workers had rejected a “below inflation pay offer of 10.1%”. It described the action as “a major escalation” in its pay dispute with the airport.
Research by the union suggests that since 2017, the average pay of Heathrow workers has fallen by 24% in real terms.
Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said that strike action at Heathrow will continue until the airport management makes a “fair pay offer”.
“This is an incredibly wealthy company, which this summer is anticipating bumper profits and an executive pay bonanza,” Graham added. “It’s also expected to pay out huge dividends to shareholders, yet its workers can barely make ends meet and are paid far less than workers at other airports.”
The strike dates coincide with busy times for travel including the Eid festival (28, 29 and 30 June), the beginning of the school holidays (21, 22, 23 and 24 July) and the August bank holiday (24, 25, 26 and 27 August).
A Heathrow spokesperson quoted by BBC News said that the airport will do everything it can to minimise disruption.
