BA cabin crew could strike in March

But bosses hopeful of talks settlement

British Airways cabin crew could strike from March 1 if renewed peace talks between union Unite and the airline fail.

In a letter to members the union said a strike ballot would open on January 22 and it is believed the vote would take a month to complete.

BA cabin crew voted for industrial action last month only to be thwarted by a High Court injunction after it was discovered that up to 900 staff who had already accepted voluntary redundancy took part in the poll, rendering it invalid.

Unite was known to be revising its membership database to make sure there are no ineligible parties balloted this time round.

New negotiations between BA bosses and Unite are to be held under the supervision of the Trade Unions Council (TUC) and will be chaired by its general secretary, Brendan Barber.

Staff called for the industrial action after BA chief executive, Willie Walsh (pictured), reduced the number of cabin crew on long-haul flights from 16 to 14 and introduced wage caps for existing staff and lower starting salaries for new starters.

Walsh has said publicly that BA is "fighting for survival" as it attempts to overturn record financial losses suffered in the last 18 months.

A BA spokesman said: "Unite's general secretaries [Tony Woodley and Derek Simpson] have said they are approaching the talks in a constructive spirit and are seeking a settlement."

BA has said its cabin crews' wages compare favourably to those of rival airlines Virgin Atlantic, easyJet and Ryanair.

British Airways   Unite