Chaos could descend on one of Europe’s busiest airports should a strike proceed for those who are employed by Menzies on the Shell contract at London Gatwick Airport (LGW). The group is threatening to strike for action over pay, as they are represented by Unite, the country’s leading union.
Airlines that are likely to be affected include Wizz Air, Ryanair, Air China, China Southern, Malta Air, Turkish Airlines, airBaltic, SkyAlps and Air Peace. Combined, these carriers transport up to 8,000 passengers per day at the world’s busiest single runway airport.
According to Unite The Union, the workers at Gatwick are demanding a 4.5% pay rise, in addition to bringing their overtime rate to be at parity with other Menzies workers at Gatwick. They already rejected a 3.5% offer from Menzies, in light of the company’s record global revenues, which exceeded $3 billion last year. Shell has also recorded profits reaching $6.92 billion in the first quarter of this year.
It is alleged that currently the workers on the Shell contract are earning time and a third for overtime, compared to time and a half for those who are other Menzies staff. What has upset the workers has been Menzies repeatedly using aggressive tactics by putting forward the same offer repeatedly, hoping that workers would accept it. United general secretary Sharon Graham explains:
“Menzies can afford to pay workers fairly and it should pay them fairly. Unite is totally focused on improving our members’ jobs, pay and conditions and the workforce at Menzies have Unite’s total support.”
Threatening the busy summer travel season, the current ballot for strike action is set to close on Tuesday, August 11. If industrial action proceeds, this will begin shortly after. This would hamper thousands of individuals’ travel plans from the busy London Airport, and as Unite regional officer Ben Davis explains, Gatwick passengers would not be pleased:
“Gatwick passengers will not be pleased that their summer getaways could be ruined because Menzies’ greed has resulted in their planes sitting on the tarmac. Strikes can still be avoided but Menzies needs to stop trying to strongarm our members and return with a decent offer.”
London Gatwick has responded, acknowledging that they are aware of the proposed strike action, and hopes that the two parties can find a solution through these continued discussions. Gatwick can reach up to 900 combined arrivals and departures in the peak summer months, with departures reaching between 400 and 450 each day. The airport’s runway capacity is permitted to allow 55 aircraft movements per hour.
London’s secondary airport continues to increase its intercontinental offering.
London Gatwick Airport: The Second Busiest in the UK
London is one of the largest cities in Europe, and is home to around nine million people. Gatwick Airport is located in West Sussex, around 30 miles (48 km) south of Central London, and the airport remains the second busiest in the United Kingdom, only after London Heathrow Airport (LHR). The airport is a secondary hub for British Airways, and the largest operating base for low-cost carrier easyJet. A list of those that use LGW as a base is below:
In total, 62 individual airlines operate to London Gatwick, with 193 year-round routes and an additional 123 seasonal services. Ten routes operate to domestic airports, making a total number of 326 unique routes from the British airport. The most popular routes from LGW include Málaga Airport (AGP) and Barcelona-El Prat Airport (BCN) in Spain, Dublin Airport (DUB) in Ireland, and Dubai International Airport (DXB) in the United Arab Emirates.
While negotiations continue for the relevant parties over refueling contracts at Gatwick, airlines are holding their breath as they hope for a resolution to be found that will minimize the potential disruption for thousands of passengers should the industrial action proceed. Menzies has yet to comment on the matter.
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