British Airways passengers face the possibility of a fresh wave of disruption and mass flight cancellations as outsourced catering staff have announced a two-day strike.
The catering staff will embark on the strike on March 4 and March 5 over pay and work conditions.
About 100 catering truck drivers employed by the upmarket airline catering firm DO & CO intend to stage a 48-hour walkout, after voting 94 percent in favor of the action following failed talks with the company.
In recent days, British Airways has faced significant disruption from two storms that battered the UK, and forced the airline to ground hundreds of flights.
The weather had a knock-on effect on staffing levels that left thousands of passengers without their baggage.
There was even more disruption on Tuesday morning when the airline suffered another IT meltdown.
The powerful union has warned that the strike will not only leave passengers hungry, but could also ground the vast majority of flights because food has to be loaded onboard flights for pilots and cabin crew as part of their contracts.
“Strike action will cause major disruption for BA and other airlines as pilots and cabin crew are required to have food on board as part of their contracts.
“The impact would be most severe on flights of more than six hours in duration – three hours to the destination and three back to the UK. No food on board equals no flights,” a regional officer for the union, Shereen Higginson, said.
The union blasted DO & CO for paying staff “some of the lowest rates in the London region” while claiming to treat their employees like family.
DO & CO also provides catering services to several other airlines at Heathrow, including the Dubai-based Emirates, which currently serves the airport with six daily flights.
British Airways first teamed up with DO & CO in 2018 when it hired the Viennese company to help redesign it’s Club World long-haul dining concept and menu.
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