LONDON: The British Airways pilots’ strike will continue into its second and last day on Tuesday after their union reported strong support for the industrial action.
The strike, which grounded most of the airline’s flights on Monday, is costing BA £40 million a day, according to the British Airline Pilots Association (Balpa), who claim the dispute could have been settled for as little as a £1 million.
Balpa reported support for the first day of the 48-hour strike, called in a bitter dispute over pay, was “virtually 100%”.
No talks are planned to try to break the deadlocked row, and a further 24-hour walkout is planned for September 27.
Balpa said its members were “standing firm” in what is their first industrial action taken against BA, a strike which has caused the cancellation of more than 1,700 flights over the two days, affecting 195,000 passengers.
BA has offered a pay rise of 11.5% over three years, which it says would boost the pay of some captains to £200,000, but Balpa says its members want a bigger share of the company’s profits.
(Agencies)
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