Strikes by airline catering contractors working for dnata at Gatwick have been cancelled after Unite secured the reinstatement of its members’ shift allowances.
The announcement last month meant that airlines such as easyJet and Tui had been facing the possibility of having no food or drink on flights during the planned walkouts in April and May.
The dispute was over dnata’s removal of a shift allowance for all staff last April, which resulted in workers receiving a pay cut of between £1,500 and £2,000, said the union.
More than 100 workers voted for action but the strikes were then postponed to allow for further talks.
Now Unite said it has secured the reinstatement of the shift allowance, with workers receiving full back pay as well as retaining a previously agreed night shift premium.
Sharon Graham, Unite general secretary, said: “Unite never tolerates attacks on our members’ jobs, terms or conditions and I am pleased this dispute has been successfully resolved.”
Unite regional officer Dominic Rothwell added: “This result could not have been achieved without the hard work of Unite’s dnata workplace reps and shows the power of being in a union.”
A dnata catering and retail spokesperson said: “We are pleased to confirm that our employees at London Gatwick have overwhelmingly voted in favour of our improved offer, resulting in the cancellation of the planned industrial action. We thank our colleagues and the union for their support and constructive engagement.
“We are dedicated to providing each employee with fair compensation to recognise their contributions to the company. We will continue to invest in our people, training and infrastructure to be an employer of choice and consistently deliver best-in-class services for our customers and their customers.
“We remain committed to the UK market, with an ongoing long-term vision to be the most admired catering and retail services provider in the aviation sector.”
EasyJet had said it would work with dnata to ensure “contingency plans” were in place if the action had gone ahead.