Cabin crew that work for Thomas Cook are voting on potential strike action during the May half term school holidays. This is because of a dispute about health and safety after changes were made to their rest breaks.
Under the new rules, cabin crew will be allowed one 20 minute break over the course of a 12 hour shift. This is according to Unite, the largest union in Britain. As a response, over 1000 cabin crew members are taking part in a ballot vote over whether they should take industrial action. Unite said that there were concerns that cabin crew were being worked to the maximum capacity to increase profits, putting passenger safety at risk. The union also accused Thomas Cook of refusing to agree to talks to reach a solution.
A spokesperson for Thomas Cook said that nothing matters to the airline more than safety. They said that the crew rest procedure was introduced with the agreement of Unite, so it is ‘regrettable’ that they have chosen the path of potential strike action. They said that the rest breaks meet regulations by the Civil Aviation Authority and do not compromise on safety. Lastly, the spokesman said that the message the airline is receiving from the crew is that they are looking forward to a summer of flying customers on holiday.
The ballot will be taken by staff who work on flights from 10 airports across the UK and it closes on the 25th of May. The results of the ballot will indicate whether industrial action should be launched during the May half term.
Typically, cabin crew work shifts of between 10-15 hours for up to 60 hours a week. Their shifts will include preparations before take off, safety and security checks, boarding and providing a service to passengers of drinks, food, duty free sales and other products. Previously,every six hours staff could take a 20 minute break. Thomas Cook has also introduced a new shopping service called Airshoppen- it is an extra in flight service which allows passengers to order products online before their flight and have them delivered to their seat. The service involves cabin crew picking and packing orders before the take off of a flight and could take around two hours to deliver, according to Unite.
A representative from Unite said that the members are ‘deeply concerned’ about the potential impact that the changes to rest periods could have on safety. Fatigue is a big factor in accidents and could result in slower response times if there happens to be an incident. For cabin crew, their main concern is the safety of passengers- however Unite say that Thomas Cook seems to be ‘intent’ on working them ‘to the bone’ to increase profit at the expense of the safety of passengers.
For more information about Thomas Cook procedures, contact the customer service team.
If the strike goes ahead, we will bring you a full report of how it will affect your half term holiday.
