‘The deal done between the TGWU and Gate Gourmet is worthless, I’m going to apply to an Employment Tribunal for unfair dismissal,’ Mr A Singh told News Line yesterday afternoon.
Gurdev Barespal, said: ‘We are all going to claim for unfair dismissal, we were locked out on the tenth of August and we have to put in our claim within three months, that means we’ve only got three weeks left.’
They were speaking after TGWU national officer Tom Chinnery had made a report to a mass picket on the hill at Heathrow Airport.
Chinnery told the locked-out workers: ‘The deal has been endorsed by Gate Gourmet and us and it can now go ahead, however, a problem which I never envisaged has now arisen.
‘British Airways have told us that they want to re-look at their deal with Gate Gourmet, it has not been signed.
‘The letters that were due to go out on the 10th of October to 144 people being made compulsorily redundant have not been sent although they are ready to go.’
He added: ‘We’ve been in discussion with our lawyers about the cut-off date of November the ninth and solicitors will be at the T&G offices in Hillingdon tomorrow, able to take statements from members.
‘Questions of outstanding money owed by Gate Gourmet to people, we have raised with the company a number of times but still have no answer.
‘There will be a written briefing given to shop stewards at the Hillingdon office tomorrow.
‘There is a high degree of nervousness about Gate Gourmet at the moment. Can we trust them? – all I can say is we hope so. We’ve got our fingers crossed.
‘At the moment it is BA that is holding up the deal. The deal on 144 compulsory redundancies will only kick in if BA signs its deal with Gate Gourmet.
‘Gate Gourmet and ourselves have done the deal but it includes an important caveat, it will only proceed if BA signs a contract with Gate Gourmet.
‘When they do sign it then the letters will be sent out, but not until then.
‘We are absolutely livid and furious with BA for not signing it. The problem is if this is prolonged, if it goes on for too long, the three months will be up.’
Chinnery continued: ‘We originally asked BA not to sign a deal with Gate Gourmet until labour relations problems are sorted out. We then told them that these problems have been sorted but they said that they have problems with Gate Gourmet themselves. We were amazed.’
Earlier yesterday morning pickets welcomed Joergen Linte, a Gate Gourmet worker from Copenhagen. He brought with him a substantial cheque of over £10,000 and full support from the Danish airport workers.
