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January 3, 2008 |
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BAA LTD: Unions Call Off Planned Jan. 7 Strike Action Leaders of Unite and the Public and Commercial Services Union have decided to call off an industrial action set for Jan. 7 after last-minute talks with BAA Ltd. (fka BAA plc) over workers' final salary pension scheme reached an agreement, BBC News reports. According to the report, the planned strike actions on Jan. 14 and Jan. 17, will also be canceled if the pension scheme deal is approved by union members. "Following a productive discussion, BAA and the trade unions have reached an agreement in principle," a BAA spokesman was quoted by BBC as saying. "The trade unions will now consult their members on the proposed agreement and, to allow sufficient time for that, have agreed to call off the industrial action planned for Jan. 7." BAA and the trade unions is scheduled to meet again on Jan. 4, the spokesman told BBC. Strike Vote On Dec. 21, 2007, Unite national aviation secretary Brendan Gold announced that workers at BAA's seven airports across the U.K. have voted for strike action to defend their final salary pension scheme. BAA airport firefighters, security, maintenance, administrative and clerical staff belonging to Unite: the union and PCS are covered by the strike vote. A total of 1946 Unite members voted for strike action with 1108 voting against. "BAA has just posted profits of over five hundred million pounds and the Spanish owners Ferrovial have seen their profits rise by nearly sixty per cent. It is clear that our members' pension scheme is financially sound, and should be left alone," Mr. Gold said. "Our quarrel is with BAA and Ferrovial, not with airline passengers. So we have avoided taking industrial action during the holiday period. But our members are determined that the campaign on which we are now embarking will succeed in protecting the future of the pension scheme." About BAA Headquartered in London, United Kingdom, BAA Ltd. (fka BAA plc) -- http://www.baa.com/ -- owns and operates seven airports in the United Kingdom, including Heathrow, the world's busiest international airport, and Budapest Airport, serving 700 destinations by around 300 airlines. In June 2006, BAA was bought by a consortium led by Grupo Ferrovial SA, the Spanish construction company. Ferrovial is one of the world's leading construction groups, specializing in four strategic lines of business - airports, construction, transport infrastructure and services - throughout Spain, the U.K., Portugal and nine other countries in Europe and the rest of the world. The company has around 89,000 employees and a net revenue of EUR12.4 billion. * * * As reported in the TCR-Europe on Nov. 27, 2007, Standard & Poor's Ratings Services has lowered its long-term corporate credit rating on U.K.-based airports operator BAA Ltd. to 'BB-' from 'BBB+', reflecting delays in refinancing, as well as operating issues. |
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