Airbus workers at the company’s factories in Broughton, North Wales, and Filton, Gloucestershire look set to take strike action in a dispute over pay.
Around 3,000 Airbus employees, members of Unite, the UK’s leading union, voted overwhelmingly to strike after the company refused to improve on an "unacceptably low" pay offer for 2021.
Workers shouldered a pay freeze in 2020 and the workforce at Broughton was reduced by around 2,000, although they avoided compulsory redundancies.
Neither party is commenting on the offer figure this year but it is understood to be around 2.5%. It comes as inflation is currently at over 5%.
Strikes at the Broughton and Filton sites, which design, test and manufacture wings for Airbus’ commercial aircraft, could begin as early as March.
Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said: “This vote makes it abundantly clear that our members are totally dissatisfied with Airbus’ unacceptably low pay offer. Airbus needs to acknowledge that and table a sensible offer, one that amply reflects rising living costs, before this dispute escalates further.
“The deal simply does not reflect our members’ hard work and dedication, nor the sacrifices they have made over the last two years. There is no excuse – Airbus can well afford to pay its workers the decent rise they deserve and it should move to do so without delay.”
Unite said strike action can be avoided if Airbus returns to negotiations and puts forward an offer that meets the workers’ expectations.
On a ballot with an 84 per cent turn out, 94 per cent of Unite Airbus members voted for strike action.
Unite national officer for aerospace, Rhys McCarthy, said: “In 2020, Airbus workers accepted a pay freeze and since then have worked extremely hard to get the company back on track as the country emerges from the pandemic.
“Now Airbus needs to step up and ensure they have a fair pay increase to help mitigate rocketing inflation and the rising cost of living. There is still time to avoid strike action but Airbus needs to table an offer our members can accept.”
An Airbus spokesperson said: "We understand the decision to vote in favour of industrial action has not been taken lightly; however, we are disappointed by the decision, given the damaging impact it will have on our recovery from the pandemic, which has been the worst crisis the aviation industry has ever faced.
"Airbus in the UK managed to successfully navigate the first waves of the pandemic without the need for any compulsory redundancies at a cost of more than £100M and we made our pay offer in the context of the pandemic’s impact on our business and the wider benefits structure employees receive.
"The Company is keen to avoid damaging industrial action so we can focus on building a resilient, competitive and collaborative place to work for years to come.
"We are committed to ongoing dialogue with the Trade Union to help bring this situation to a successful resolution.
"The safety of our people and products is paramount and we will now implement plans to ensure the protection of our operations is maintained going forward."
