Industrial action by Unite members who look after passengers with disabilities at London Stansted Airport will go ahead next month, after they rejected a new pay offer.

Around 100 workers at ABM will now walk out from 3 May to 6 May, coinciding with the first May bank holiday weekend, after rejecting a substandard pay offer from their employer. ABM staff, who do a crucial job escorting passengers on and off flights and through the airport say the offer failed to tackle low pay.

Many of the workers are paid below the London Living Wage of £14.80. Yet ABM is a highly profitable global company, reporting in March that it made $2.2 billion in revenue, an increase of 6.1 per cent on the previous year.

Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said: "ABM staff do a vital job for passengers at the airport, yet they are struggling with low pay while their employer makes huge profits. This situation is unacceptable and workers at ABM continue to have Unite's full support."

As well as historic issues with low pay, workers at ABM say they have had to take on more responsibilities as the number of passengers they work with and flights they deal with have increased. In January, Stansted saw more than 1.89 million passengers pass through the terminal, up two per cent on the same month last year.

Any strikes will cause delays to flights, as it will take longer to board passengers who rely on this service.

Unite regional officer Steve Edwards said: "Workers at ABM are increasingly given bigger workloads and deserve pay that reflects this.

"Their employer can afford to come back with an offer workers would accept and could end this dispute easily by doing so. But until then, Unite members will strike until their voices are heard."

Planned strikes on 17 to 20 April by ABM workers were postponed in good faith to allow workers to vote on a last minute pay offer.

ENDS

Notes to editors

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Email: natasha.wynarczyk@unitetheunion.org