Heathrow hassles: Security guards to strike over Easter

Security guards at Heathrow Airport’s Terminal Five are to strike for 10 days from 31 March in a dispute over pay, according to the BBC.

The Unite union says more than 1,400 of its members employed by Heathrow will walk out in a period which covers the school Easter holidays.

Workers at T5, which is used by British Airways, and those who check cargo entering the airport, will take part in the action, ending on Easter Sunday.

Heathrow says contingency plans will be put in place to keep the airport open.

In a statement, Heathrow said passengers can be assured the airport will be “open and operational despite unnecessary threats of strike action by Unite”.

The company said it had proposed “an inflation-beating 10% increase in pay”.

But Unite says the offer does not make up for years of pay freezes and cuts.

Unite union secretary general Sharon Graham says workers at Heathrow Airport are on “poverty wages” while “the chief executive and senior managers enjoy huge salaries”.

When the strike takes place at Heathrow T5 from 31 March, the airport will likely need to move resources from other areas.

The airport says the wage proposal on offer is fair, and “threatening to ruin people’s hard-earned holidays with strike action will not improve the deal”.

It said staff at Heathrow are paid at least the London Living Wage, while the starting salary for a security officer would be £27,754, plus shift pay and allowances, if its 10% offer is accepted.

Thank you for taking the time to read this article. Do remember to come back and check The Euro Weekly News website for all your up-to-date local and international news stories and remember, you can also follow us on Facebook and Instagram.