BA vows to fly 60% of passengers02: 02 16/03/2010, Dan Milmo, aviation, British Airways, business, Gordon Brown, news, politics, guardian, unions, tra

BA vows to fly 60% of passengers02: 02 16/03/2010, Dan Milmo, aviation, British Airways, business, Gordon Brown, news, politics, guardian, unions, transport, news, United Kingdom Guardian Unlimited

Unite union says the strikes suspended if BA made a previous offer on the negotiating table


British Airways has agreed to fly between six and 10 passengers to their destinations in an impending strike by cabin crew next weekend, as the conflict ends in a political dispute between the Unite union and Gordon Brown.

Unite has offered to suspend the strike starting Saturday if BA returns to make an offer of peace. Tony Woodley, joint general secretary of Unite, told Sky News: "If the offer is on the table there is no reason that strikes can not be suspended."

BA has so far refused to restore the supply, despite the intervention of ACAS, the conciliation service, which has asked both parties if they move away from confrontation if the document is put back on the table.

Last night BA said the offer will be refunded only if united recommend acceptance to members. "Tony Woodley, is not saying that I would recommend it. He is not saying he would accept. BA has been threatened with a strike for months. We are tired of the uncertainty and we will not tolerate it," said a BA spokesman.

The offer, which includes the partial repeal of retrenchment in the center of controversy and a three-year agreement for payment has already met with opposition from the branch of Unite cabin crew, Bassa. In a document distributed to the 12,000 cabin crew at BA, Bassa, said: "In our opinion, was far from a good selection, some good words, but not much substance."

Gordon Brown yesterday used his strongest condemnation yet of the strike, despite being led by the union that funds the work. Brown has been in contact with Woodley and the head of BA, Willie Walsh, in the last 48 hours, and TUC general secretary Brendan Barber, in a desperate attempt to find a solution.

Speaking to the BBC, Brown called for the strike was suspended, "It's a bad time, is unwarranted, is deplorable. There should be a strike. It is in the interest of the company, not in the workers' interest and certainly not in the national interest. "

The union has given £ 11m job in the last four years, which prompted conservatives to demand that Labor hands dirty money back. There are senior figures in government who believe that the Union must be defeated in the dispute and it is estimated that BA can succeed in minimizing the impact of the strike by the staff retraining.

Walsh is committed to operating a significant proportion of BA services during the first phase of the controversy from this weekend. The airline intends to fly about 45,000 passengers a day with a workforce of volunteers from the cabin crew of 1,000 people and 22 aircraft leased, with the crew. Thousands more passengers are being put on other airlines or BA flights on different dates. In general, plans to fly at 60% capacity, meaning that about 30,000 passengers per day will have to make alternative arrangements. BA has already offered full refunds to anyone booked to travel between 19 and 31 March.

On its website last night, BA announced its schedule for the period from the first stroke and said "all flights to and from London City and all long-haul flights to and from London Gatwick will continue to operate normally throughout the strike period.

"We deeply regret that our clients are innocent victims of this cynical attack on their travel plans by U.S. leaders," said Walsh. "Despite the desire of the leadership of Unite to land the airline, the flag continue to fly."

No details were provided of BA's plans for the second strike, a four-day strike beginning on 27 March.

BA plans were announced shortly after Woodley hit back at Prime Minister labeled the strike as "unjustified and deplorable," Woodley said: "It's unbelievable, is not it, how many people in interesting political times jump to Cart condemn many workers. "

Speaking at the world at the BBC Radio 4, Woodley also hit back at the transport secretary, Lord Adonis, who had said he "absolutely deplored" the planned strike. "For an unelected person has not a clue about this conflict, I think it would have been better to keep your lawyer," said Woodley. "We have a secretary of transportation [which] has no industrial experience and which do not pick up the phone and wanted to know exactly what the problem is."

Sources close to the flurry of controversy that followed Brown Woodley direct communication with the weekend, when we understand the debate was less aggressive and based on the search for possible solutions, including the Union to reconsider the offer from BA. Unite bill, which now seems unlikely to be revived, including a low of 2.6% pay cut this year, matching a similar move by BA pilots, and the return of some 700 cabin crew aircraft to BA.

Program of work of more than 1,100 jobs cabin crew have been dismissed by BA since November after a voluntary redundancy scheme and a part-time. BA's decision to do this unilaterally provoked controversy and led to almost 12 days of Christmas strike, which stopped only by a 11-hour high court order.

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