I'm All Right, Jack

28 July 2003


British Unions Shooting Own Feet

God love the British unions. The introduction of an electronic entrance pass sparked a wildcat strike against British Airways and has led to fears of official strikes by unions including the Transport and General Workers Union, Amicus and the GMB. The beauty of it is that management has to please all three, and all three are in competition for members at all times. Moderation is not likely, and best of all, they are fighting over the wrong things.

The unions fear, rightly, that the electronic cards could be used to track worker movements that ultimately would result in staffing decreases and reduced working hours. Remembering always that unions are interested in jobs and pay and not in common-sense moves to enhance profitability, they must at very least get something in exchange for allowing the electronic pass to be sued.

That said, BA needs to keep its planes in the air and the money coming in. In these times, any airline that forfeits customer loyalty may never get it back. The 100,000 who were "inconvenienced" by the wildcat strike include many who "will never fly BA again." If that is true, and if there is an official strike, or a work-to-rule decision, BA stands to lose millions of pounds. Sadly, this increases the need to streamline staffing, which is precisely what the unions don't want. BA lost L60 million in the quarter ended June thanks to war and SARS panic -- it doesn't need help losing cash.

What is the wise union leader to do? First, the card is going to be used if only for security purposes; that must be admitted. Second, something for something is better than nothing for something, so get any productivity improvements the card brings in transferred to paychecks. Third, it will mean job losses, so negotiate hefty golden handshakes for those who do lose their jobs. Fourth, form a united front, don't call each other sell outs when the settling starts, and remember that this is not a huge issue. This isn't a life or death matter like the 1984-85 coal miners' strike, so don't play it that way.