THE TGWU leadership, (now sheltering under the Unite label) has once again dropped a decision by its members to take strike action to defend pensions, without anything in return from the employer, BAA, to justify such a decision.
It was in January 2007 that the TGWU rubbished the BA cabin crews’ decision to take strike action to defend their pensions, a decision taken with over 90 per cent voting for strike action.
Last Sunday, the Brendan Gold-led trade union team agreed to cancel the strike of BAA employees scheduled for January 7th, and to cancel the remaining strikes on January 14 and 17 if BAA carries on making conciliatory noises, without making any real concessions.
On December 10, Unite and the TGWU told the media that at a meeting with the company ‘The trade unions reiterated that BAA’s decision to close its final salary pension scheme to new entrants must be reversed, as it was clear that the pension scheme was financially sound with an account deficit of £29 million against assets of £2.2 billion.
‘Unite national secretary for civil air transport Brendan Gold said: “We offered BAA the opportunity to discuss pension concerns following release of the next actuarial valuation, due next year. But BAA must first reverse its decision to close the scheme to new entrants. The unions are not prepared to accept the introduction of a devalued pension provision which places our members’ future pensions at risk of the stock market”.’
Last Sunday, BAA agreed to have consultations with the union but did not agree to reverse the ending of the final salary scheme for new starters. Nevertheless, Gold of Unite-TGWU just rolled over and cancelled the first of the three strike actions.
All that is going to happen now, is that BAA will consult until January 20 when the last of the strike actions is due to be over, and then begin imposing their plan to begin the destruction of the BAA final salary pension scheme.
It has become crystal clear that the Unite (TGWU) gripe with BAA is not that the final salary pension plan is to be carried out, but that the union bureaucracy was not consulted about it.
They want to be part of the process out of fear that BAA is about to clear them out of the airports under its control.
We repeat, Gold is not fighting for the members but for Unite and TGWU officials to continue to be part of BAA’s industrial relations process.
This is why the meeting tomorrow of BAA union reps must throw out the rotten consultation deal, censure Gold for calling off the strike action, and reinstate the strike action on the 7th.
In fact, the employers, with the government in support, are going onto the offensive all over the industry.
The case of Virgin Airlines proves this.
The staff of the company have decided to take strike action because their wages are much lower than Virgin’s rivals, British Airways.
Sir Richard Branson has told Virgin Atlantic staff that they should get work with BA, and that he will not be meeting the pay demands of the 4,800 cabin crew.
This is only one step away from sacking staff who take strike action.
What is happening on the airports is that the mounting capitalist crisis, complete with a massive inflation in oil prices, is creating the conditions where the airport proprietors and airlines are determined to keep their costs down by slashing wages and pensions.
The Unite (TGWU) trade union must face up to this attack, not run away from it leaving its members in the lurch.
BAA and Virgin must be told that the strikes are on, and that the workers’ demands must be satisfied.
The trade union leaders must be made to inform the BAA, BA and Virgin bosses that in the event of the use of ‘replacement’ workers ie scabs, that the union leaders will organise the TUC General Council to call a general strike.
