British Airways has proposed a shake-up of employee pay and conditions in a move that could lead to substantial cuts in remuneration and holidays for its 13,500 cabin crew.
The proposals are believed to be at the forefront of a cost-cutting drive under which BA wants to reduce its in-flight budget of £567.9 million by £82 million. Cabin crew are regarded internally at BA as having the best compensation package.
The airline, which says that it needs to save money because of the downturn in the aviation sector, has issued staff with 32 money-saving proposals. These include cutting annual leave from 36 days to 34, a two-year pay freeze and a reduction in bonuses for working on long-haul routes.
More than 1,500 cabin crew met on Monday to discuss the proposals and unanimously rejected permanent changes to their terms and conditions. It is understood that they told BA they were willing to discuss “temporary solutions to a temporary downturn” and said that any attempt to make these permanent could lead to strike action.
