Union welcomes BA decision to keep north east calls centres
British Airways’ decision to keep its two call centres at Manchester and Newcastle in-house, rather than outsource them, has been welcomed by Unite, the country’s largest union.
The airline was considering shifting around 1,000 jobs in the north east of England to external company Capita as part of a review of its global call centre operations launched last June.
But Unite said the airline had announced today that it was keeping the jobs in-house following what it described as a period of ‘intense negotiations’ between the company and the union.
Unite said it was particularly pleased that it saw off a proposal that could have seen the ‘controversial’ outsourcing giant Capita take over the centres that deal with customer queries relating to new bookings, checking upgrades, flight prices, hotel bookings and car hire.
Unite national officer for civil air transport Oliver Richardson said: "We are very pleased that, working with the BA management, we have been able to make the strong case that customer services are best served by the centres remaining within BA.
"This will give reassurance for the future to our members at Manchester and Newcastle. This decision has come about without any loss in pay and terms and conditions for the workforce, although we are working closely with the company to implement mutually agreed efficiency savings.
"More generally, I think there is a new mood across business and other organisations in the UK that, following the recent Carillion debacle, outsourcing is not necessarily the best option if you wish to develop your business successfully – and keep the customers happy."
Rival union GMB has blamed an IT error that forced BA to ground some flights last year on its decision to outsource some crucial functions.
Linsey McNeill
Editor Linsey McNeill has been writing about travel for more than three decades. Bylines include The Times, Telegraph, Observer, Guardian and Which? plus the South China Morning Post. She also shares insider tips on thetraveljournalist.co.uk
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