UK airline jobs at risk, says union
The union for the UK’s aviation industry has warned that more jobs are at risk following a spate of redundancy consultations with airlines.
Unite said it has recently been involved in redundancy consultations at XL Airways, Flyglobespan, and First Choice, and is now in discussions with Virgin following its decision to scrap its in-flight beauty service.
The union said the cutbacks were a clear indication of widespread problems facing the industry.
It said the ‘Open Skies’ agreement, consolidation within the sector, competition from low-cost carriers and increasing fuel costs are just some of the factors which are now putting aviation jobs at risk.
“We are also concerned that the Government’s flawed plans to replace Air Passenger Duty with the Plane Tax will increase pressure on the UK’s aviation sector as a whole, and ultimately lead to more job losses,†said Unite national officer Brian Boyd.
“Unite will be raising its concerns with government in our forthcoming submission on the Government’s proposals.”
Virgin’s decision to cut its in-flight beauty service means 320 jobs will go.
But Virgin said there would be no compulsory redundancies and all in-flight beauty therapists will be offered jobs either as cabin crew or beauty therapists on the ground.
Lyell Strambi, chief operating officer for Virgin Atlantic, said: “We continually review and adapt the product we are investing in to ensure it reflects what is most valued by our customers.
“As a result of the review we are increasing the number of beauty therapists working at the Heathrow Clubhouse leading to an increase of 70% more treatments everyday.
Unite has more than 70,000 members spread across the UK Civil Aviation Sector, which includes some 24,000 Cabin Crew members.
By:Bev Fearis
Bev
Editor in chief Bev Fearis has been a travel journalist for 25 years. She started her career at Travel Weekly, where she became deputy news editor, before joining Business Traveller as deputy editor and launching the magazine’s website. She has also written travel features, news and expert comment for the Guardian, Observer, Times, Telegraph, Boundless and other consumer titles and was named one of the top 50 UK travel journalists by the Press Gazette.
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