Thomsonfly staff to consider strike ballot
29 January 2008Cabin crew working with Thomsonfly are to be asked this week if they will support a full strike ballot.
Trade union Unite announced that it will canvass the opinions of its 1,700 members working at Thomsonfly after bosses at the airline reportedly refused to offer assurances over job security.
Concerns have emerged that there could be redundancies made when Thomsonfly merges with TUI Travel.
The vote, which will take place on January 30th, will involve cabin crew at all Thomsonfly operations, which cover most major UK airports, meaning that any strike action could see many holidaymakers relying on their travel insurance to cover delays and cancellations.
Kevin Hall, Unite's regional industrial organiser, said: "It is the failure of the airline to categorically rule out compulsory redundancies over a long period which has tried the patience of union negotiators.
"Cabin crew, who are employed by Thomsonfly and not yet by TUI Travel, have been concerned to see today's announcement about redundancies in the travel shops."
If the vote returns a 'yes' result, the union will have 28 days in which to take any action.