{"id":27463,"date":"2021-01-21T10:05:52","date_gmt":"2021-01-21T10:05:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/unitelive.org\/?p=27463"},"modified":"2021-01-22T12:23:48","modified_gmt":"2021-01-22T12:23:48","slug":"we-refuse-to-be-kicked-again","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/?p=27463","title":{"rendered":"‘We refuse to be kicked again’"},"content":{"rendered":"
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BA cargo workers at Heathrow airport are set to strike again for nine days from Friday (January 22).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The company\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s refusal to row back on its opportunistic plans to fire and rehire its loyal cargo staff on inferior pay and conditions, stripping workers of between \u00c2\u01416,000-\u00c2\u01418,000 a year, permanently has driven them to it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ahead of this second round of strikes, we spoke to a couple of members about why they\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re striking and the impact the company\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s \u00e2\u20ac\u0098fire and rehire\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 decision has had on them and their families. Here\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s what they had to say.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ash* who\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s been with BA cargo (IAG) for 20 years said, \u00e2\u20ac\u015bI\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve dedicated my life to the company because it has always looked after me and my family.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u015bBut now I just feel really let down. I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m so disappointed at the company\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s decision. They don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t have to do this, they\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re just using Covid as an excuse. It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s left me extremely stressed and wondering how I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m going to pay my mortgage and bills.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

 This time, Ash* thinks they\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve gone too far.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u015bOver the years management has always wanted to make savings, and we and the union have always delivered, from roster changes to moving us onto inferior pensions,\u00e2\u20ac\u0165 he said. \u00e2\u20ac\u015bNow they want to rip up our terms and conditions and give us less money.This is why I’m reluctantly going on strike.\u00e2\u20ac\u0165<\/p>\n\n\n\n

 For Joe* the threats and lack of respect is why he\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s striking.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

 \u00e2\u20ac\u015bI was 18 years old when I started. Pulled out all the stops for this once great company,\u00e2\u20ac\u0165 he said.  \u00e2\u20ac\u015bSince the arrival of IAG the place has become more like a prison.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

 \u00e2\u20ac\u015bI\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m worse off now. IAG has made me poorer. I have been stressed out with this. I don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t feel valued at all or appreciated for all the hard work I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve put in. It made me so mad when the management threatened that \u00e2\u20ac\u0098I would lose staff travel forever\u00e2\u20ac\u2122, if I didn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t sign the settlement agreement.\u00e2\u20ac\u0165<\/p>\n\n\n\n

 Gary* wants people to know that this isn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t about wanting more money.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

 \u00e2\u20ac\u015bTaking strike action is not something I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve done lightly. I don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t want more money,\u00e2\u20ac\u0165 he said. \u00e2\u20ac\u015bWhat I want is for my terms and conditions to be left alone. I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve a worked for BA for 26 years and if I want to continue to work for BA I would be taking a 20% pay cut.\u00e2\u20ac\u0165<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Key workers<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

BA cargo workers have worked throughout the pandemic, bringing in PPE and other vital supplies. They are key workers who have helped the company achieve record profits during the crisis, with IAG Cargo seeing large revenue gains after responding to the freight crisis.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Brian* who has worked for BA cargo for over 30 years felt proud when he first received the email from work telling him that under government guidelines he was an \u00e2\u20ac\u0098essential part of the supply chain\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 \u00e2\u20ac\u201c a key worker. He felt he was doing his bit, but he is highly critical of the management\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s slow response to protecting workers and how they\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve treated staff since.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When staff were thanked for \u00e2\u20ac\u0098making record profits\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 for the company, this is what in effect Brian and his colleagues were told, Brian noted: \u00e2\u20ac\u015b’Thanks for all you\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re hard work everyone, we\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re making record profits now. Oh and by the way we\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re terminating you\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re contracts and re-employing you on 20 per cent less money and new terms and conditions.\u00e2\u20ac\u2122\u00e2\u20ac\u0165<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u015bWow, after 32 years I wasn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t expecting that,\u00e2\u20ac\u0165 Brian added.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

 \u00e2\u20ac\u015bI feel betrayed after all I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve done putting myself my loved ones at risk. It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s a kick in the teeth.  Eleven years of pay rises taken away from me, my terms and conditions ripped from under me.  Lied to time after time. They can\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t get away with treating us like this – it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s immoral.\u00e2\u20ac\u0165<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Solidarity<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

 The first round of strikes started on Christmas day<\/a>. It was the first time many had taken strike action. It was a stressful time and the decision to walk out was not taken lightly, especially in the middle of a global pandemic. This is what a few of our members had to say:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

 \u00e2\u20ac\u015bThe 25th of December 2020, 12.01am was the saddest and at the same time proudest day in my 25 years of working for BA.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

 \u00e2\u20ac\u015bSad because I never thought the day would come when I would have to walk out, because the company that I was once truly proud to say I worked for, would use the back drop of this terrible pandemic to attack its staff, rip up our terms and conditions and impose massive pay cuts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

 \u00e2\u20ac\u015bWe have kept the company going throughout the pandemic, when passengers haven\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t been flying.\u00e2\u20ac\u0165 Stephen* added.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

 On the solidarity shown among his colleagues, he said, \u00e2\u20ac\u015bProud isn’t a big enough word to describe how I feel. We have such a multicultural work force, with legacy staff and \u00e2\u20ac\u0098Futures staff\u00e2\u20ac\u2122.  All on different pay scales and rosters, male, female, young and old. People who have worked for one year and people who have worked for 40 years. The unity shown by everyone is truly amazing, but we cannot stop now — we must stay strong and together.\u00e2\u20ac\u0165<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Brian* added, \u00e2\u20ac\u015bThe only decent thing to come from all of this is that the management has made us stronger. We all feel the same.  800 of us used and dumped. Dumped by a faceless employer with no morals just greed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

 \u00e2\u20ac\u015bWe are now an 800-strong army, who refuse to be kicked again, which is why we\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re continuing with our fight for justice with more strike action.\u00e2\u20ac\u0165<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Please show your support for our BA cargo workers. If you\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re on social media share your messages of solidarity using #BACargoStrike. Even better, why not record a video message of solidarity? Make sure to include Unite in your posts so that we can retweet @unitetheunion on Twitter<\/a> and @unitetheunion1 on Facebook.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

By Chantal Chegrinec<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u00c2\u00a0*Name changed to protect identity.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

BA cargo workers at Heathrow airport are set to strike again for nine days from Friday (January 22). The company\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s refusal to row back on its opportunistic plans to fire and rehire its loyal cargo staff on inferior pay and conditions, stripping workers of between \u00c2\u01416,000-\u00c2\u01418,000 a year, permanently has driven them to it. Ahead […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":5560,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[17],"tags":[897,390,1485,511],"wps_subtitle":"BA cargo workers speak out ahead of latest \u00e2\u20ac\u0098fire and rehire\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 strike","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27463"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=27463"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27463\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":27492,"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27463\/revisions\/27492"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/5560"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=27463"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=27463"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=27463"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}