Unite union complains airline bosses tabled worse offer, crushing optimism that three-day walkout would be suspended A three-day walkout by cabin crew at British Airways will go ahead at midnight tonight after last-ditch talks aimed at averting the strike collapsed. The BA chief executive, Willie Walsh, and the joint general secretary of Unite, Tony Woodley, had been locked in hours of talks said to have been balanced on a knife-edge, but at 2pm Woodley emerged to say the strike would go ahead. A second four-day strike is scheduled to begin on 27 March. Woodley said he was “extremely disappointed” that the strikes will go ahead and accused BA of tabling a worse offer, while Walsh described the industrial action as “completely unjustified”. The transport secretary, Lord Adonis, said: “It is disappointing that the talks have broken down. This strike is in no one’s interests and will cause major inconvenience to passengers. “Clearly, passengers travelling in the next few days will need to check with BA on the status of their flights. I continue to urge both sides to find a negotiated settlement.” Woodley claimed that BA had tabled a worse offer than one which had been offered last week. “I am extremely disappointed for the travelling public and our members, but this union will now support our members, while remaining open for talks with the company,” he said. “It is with great disappointment that I have to say the strike will go ahead. It is an absolute disgrace and an insult to our people that he [Walsh] tabled a deal that reduced the amount of pay on offer. “It is ridiculous to expect anyone to go to their membership with a worse offer.” Leaving the TUC building a few minutes after Woodley, Walsh admitted the new deal was not the same as the one offered previously. He said the financial value of the new offer was not as attractive because BA had to recover the money it had lost. The company had incurred “significant” extra expense because of the cost of its contingency plans and the number of passengers who had cancelled flights, Walsh said

Original Source BA strike to go ahead after talks collapse