About 3,500 British Airways (BA) workers, including 1,000 pilots, are ready to work as plane stewards to help ease the potentially disastrous effects of a planned strike by cabin crew. With so many pro-management staff prepared to intervene, it is expected that the UK’s national carrier will still be able to operate limited flight service even if 12,000 of its cabin crew will join the walk out.
 
BA staffs are striking over their jobs, pay and work conditions. Last week, the High Court ruled that the airline had not violated any contract by reducing the number of cabin staff on several BA flights.

With the recent verdict, cabin crew union members earning an average of £29,000 per year had clarified that they are not going to strike for more than three days and over the Easter period. In addition, several BA staff are now hesitant to take action against the company with all of their valuable travel bonuses at stake.

BA had warned the union that protesters will lose their travel benefits – which are worth thousands of pounds per year, and which allow BA staff and their family to travel long haul flights with ten per cent discount on the normal fare. Moreover, union leaders realise that they could face a major blow with BA’s new policy.

According to one union speaker, other worker groups have decided to sacrifice to ensure the airline’s survival. Meanwhile, pilots have agreed on the new pay cuts to make sure that BA keeps flying.