‘FAIR pay now! Bring us back in-house!’ demanded hundreds of Heathrow Airport workers as they marched to the Compass Centre headquarters of Heathrow Airport Limited (HAL) yesterday.
The Unite members are employed by the private contractor Wilson James to help disabled passengers onto and off flights and they are striking to demand equal pay with their colleagues employed by the same company at Gatwick Airport.
Unite rep Alexander Bilston told News Line: ‘We are on strike because of the disparity between our pay and colleagues at Gatwick who are paid 20% more than us, whereas the cost of living here is higher.
‘We’re actually paid less than the London living wage. We’re paid £13.17 an hour, while colleagues at Gatwick who are doing exactly the same work get £14.65.
‘We’ve had several strikes beginning in April and we are currently on a three-day strike. We are escalating to five days from 9th June.
‘We look after disabled passengers, those who cannot take themselves up the steps to get on and off aircraft.
‘We are strong, very much needed and it is demanding work.
‘We want to be taken back in-house and directly employed by HAL.’
Striker, Nagendra Jodhi said: ‘We want a pay rise, we should get fair pay.
‘We are helping people with disabilities, it is very hard work. Each of us helps about around 20 people a day.
‘We should be brought back in-house and directly employed, by Heathrow Airport Limited.’
Martin West, Unite regional officer, said: ‘This group of workers want pay parity with Gatwick.
‘There’s an average difference of around 10% for exactly the same work. It equates to £3 an hour.
‘There are three parties involved – Wilson James, HAL and the workers.
These workers have to wear Heathrow Airport Limited uniforms, so to all intents and purposes they work for them, but are managed by Wilson James.
This year, HAL profits were £696 million, Wilson James profits were £35 million. Both companies can easily afford fair pay.
‘These workers are not unreasonable, but they are very strong and determined.’