(Bloomberg) -- Heathrow management made an eleventh-hour offer to a union representing thousands of ground staff, leading to the suspension of a planned strike on Tuesday which would have disrupted flights at Europe's busiest airport.
The Unite labor group will take the improved offer to members for a vote and hold off on plans for a walkout, according to a statement Monday from the airport. Labor action is still planned on Aug. 23 and 24. The union said it would not disclose details of the pay offer until after the ballot.
The announcement came just hours before the workers were set to walk off the job, although the chances of getting a breakthrough had improved after the two sides in the pay dispute agreed to continue to talk. While the first day of the labor action on Monday was cancelled, 16 of 676 scheduled departures were still scrapped, according to the airport, with five more moved to other London terminals.
“We remain hopeful that we can find a resolution and stop this disruptive and unnecessary threat of strike action,” Heathrow said in the statement. “We regret that passengers have been inconvenienced by this.”
The threat of travel upheaval at Heathrow adds to risks at British Airways, where a separate dispute over pay between management and pilots may also lead to strikes. The airline, a unit of IAG SA, is scheduled to hold a new round of negotiations with pilots this week. Their union, the British Airline Pilots Association, or Balpa, has so far refrained from setting any date for a walkout. It has to give two weeks notice.
The labor conflicts at the height of the summer season come with Heathrow and BA also facing pressure from a possible no-deal Brexit that could damp travel as Britons curb spending due to the weaker pound.
To contact the reporter on this story: Benjamin Katz in London at bkatz38@bloomberg.net
To contact the editors responsible for this story: Tara Patel at tpatel2@bloomberg.net, Frank Connelly
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