ACAS, the conciliation body, has said that it will be outlining a number of proposals in the hope of finding some way to resolve the ongoing dispute between British Airways and Unite. The details of the proposals will be kept under wraps, but the two sides are allegedly to meet with ACAS some time during the week.

Following the disruption caused at ACAS the last time the two sides met, the location and timetable for any meetings will be kept top secret. It is also unlikely that BlackBerries or iPhones will be allowed into any meetings after Unite’s joint general secretary, Derek Simpson, was found to have been tweeting details of the last meeting as it was happening, resulting in an invasion of the room by SWP protestors.

The current ongoing dispute is to do with British Airways cabin crews who have been out on strike over pay and working conditions. The big sticking point in the negotiations is apparently British Airways boss, Willie Walsh’s, refusal to fully reinstate travel privileges to those who walked out during Unites first round of industrial action.

The recent walkouts by cabin crew have meant disruption to BA passengers. Although Mr Walsh claims that the levels of inconvenience have been kept to a minimum and that many workers were crossing picket lines, BA has an uphill battle after it resolves its problems with Unite in attracting customers back to the airline.

British Airways announced record annual loses recently, and with the rising cost of fuel and increasing competition, a fight with unions should be something which Mr Walsh does his best to end this week.