A strike by catering workers at London’s Heathrow airport has created chaos for thousands of air passengers. It has also severely affected the operations of British Airways (BA). Up to 70,000 travelers are waiting at or near the airport, not knowing when, or if, they will fly. Several hundred baggage handlers, cargo staff and other workers went on strike in support of 800 employees who were sacked by the US catering firm Gate Gourmet. A meeting is expected between unions and Gate Gourmet to break the deadlock.
BA’s Chief Executive Rod Eddington said: “I urge the management of Gate Gourmet and senior [union] officials to find a speedy resolution to this crisis and end the misery they are heaping on our customers.… This is not our dispute. Our customers must come first and everyone involved in creating this chaotic situation must come to their senses.” A further problem for BA is that nearly 100 airplanes and 1,000 pilots and cabin crew are still at the wrong airports around the world. BA said it would take days to clear the backlog.