No Deal In BA Talks

Talks between BA and Unite aimed at averting further strikes ended without a deal being reached and with no date set for fresh discussions, according to ACAS

ACAS said: "BA and Unite met today under the auspices of conciliation service Acas, with the assistance of the Trades Union Congress. Talks were adjourned without the parties reaching an agreement and Acas will be in contact with both parties to arrange future talks."

Derek Simpson said: "Willie Walsh is blocking a deal to end the strike. He has refused to reinstate travel concessions in full despite Unite making it clear that the union would suspend the strike if he did so.

"It would cost BA nothing to reinstate these travel concessions yet Willie Walsh is prepared to see the strike continue, putting the travel plans of thousands of passengers at risk and costing BA over GBP100 million over the course of this dispute.

"Unite has made it absolutely clear that we remain available at anytime , day or night, to meet again with the company."

Discussions took place at a secret location to avoid a repeat of last weekend's events, when Socialist Workers Party members stormed the ACAS offices, forcing talks to end.

British Airlines Stewards and Stewardesses Association, or BASSA, a branch of Unite said it would like ACAS to sit in on all disciplinary talks associated with the strike.

BA said 34 individuals have been investigated, mainly for bullying and intimidation, of which five have been asked to have conversations with their line managers when they return to work, 15 have had written warnings but have returned to work, while eight have been dismissed subject to appeal for serious cases of misconduct.

With no plans for further talks, the next round of strikes to hit BA will be from May 30 to June 3 and then from June 5 to June 9 inclusive.