Holidaymakers may be faced with travel chaos over the Jubilee bank holiday weekend, as baggage handlers at Stansted have planned seven days of strikes.
Stansted Airport is home to many low-cost carriers, including easyJet and Ryanair. But travellers’ bid to enjoy a cheap holiday may be scuppered by the industrial action from staff of ground service company Swissport.
The GMB union has confirmed the news of a strike, after it argued that changes to baggage handlers’ shifts would reduce their incomes. The action is planned from 26 to 28 May and from 2 to 6 June.
GMB organiser Gary Pearce said: “Swissport made and then withdrew a number of proposals which would have settled the dispute. It seems we have reached the end of the line.”
The strike on Wednesday is due to last 24 hours. A 48-hour strike is planned from 5.30am on Saturday (26 May) and a four-day strike from 5.30am on Saturday 2 June until Wednesday 6 June.
Ryanair has argued that it will operate on a full schedule during the period of the strikes and won’t be held to “ransom” by employment unions.
“Ryanair will not allow these unions to blackmail or disrupt our passengers,” said Stephen McNamara of Ryanair.
“If this threatened industrial action goes ahead we will ask passengers to check in online and travel with carry-on luggage only.”
The airline also argued that since it had imposed charges on checked baggage, only 25 per cent of passengers used the handlers’ service anyway.
Flights with easyJet will also be unaffected. The 150 baggage handlers who are set to go on strike also handle luggage for tour operators included Thomas Cook and Thomson, but it is not yet known how they will respond to the strikes.
Swissport said the airport would “open as normal” and that passengers should expect “no disruption to their services”.
(Image: Oxyman)
