Heathrow Strike by Ground Handlers to Go Ahead as Pay Talks Fail

By Staff, Agencies

Strikes planned by hundreds of workers at Heathrow will go ahead on Friday, union leaders said, with further dates announced for action over the Christmas period.

Unite said ground handlers at Britain’s biggest airport had rejected the latest “miserable” pay offer from their employer Menzies.

The workers will go ahead with a 72-hour strike beginning at 4am on Friday 16 December and a further 72-hour strike is planned, beginning on Thursday 29 December and ending at 3:59am on Sunday 1 January.

The dispute involves more than 400 workers employed by Menzies as ground handlers operating from Heathrow terminals 2, 3 and 4.

The post-Christmas stoppage will also coincide with the planned strike by Border Force Staff, Unite said.

The Unite general secretary, Sharon Graham, said: “This is a classic case of an employer that can fully afford to pay workers a fair pay increase but has chosen not to. Menzies needs to stop making excuses and make a pay offer that meets our members’ expectations.”