Edinburgh holidaymakers could be set for a summer of 'chaos' as airport workers have been balloted on strike action.
Unite, the UK's leading aviation trade union, confirmed on Wednesday that 275 workers based at the nations largest airport in the capital are to be balloted on industrial action over a pay dispute.
However, a spokesman for the airport has questioned the membership number quoted by the union as it reportedly does not reflect on their own membership tally.
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The vote includes those who work directly in airport security, terminal operations, search areas and deliveries. According to Unite, holidaymakers could be in for a summer of 'chaos' unless Edinburgh Airport management negotiate an improved pay offer.
The ballot opens on 5 May and closes 23 May with workers having already rejected an pay offer to one made to Gatwick Airport staff which included a 12 per cent increase plus a £1500 one-off cash payment. This offer was accepted by the workforce.
The current deal on the table for staff, according to the airport bosses, includes an 11 per cent pay rise as well as a £1000 cost of living payment which they believe is "fair" and "competitive."
Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said: “Unite’s members at Edinburgh Airport made huge sacrifices during the Covid pandemic. They agreed to reductions in pay and conditions. The workers did all this while working around the clock to keep the airport safe and running.
"The situation is entirely different now with passenger figures hitting over 11m last year, and inflation stands at a 40-year high. Pay needs to keep up with the cost of living - simple. Edinburgh Airport bosses need to make a realistic pay offer to the staff if they are to avoid a summer of travel chaos."
The airport is estimated to be the sixth-busiest in the UK attracting around a total of 11.26m people in 2022. In 2019, the busiest ever year for a Scottish airport, Edinburgh Airport recorded 14.7 million passengers.
A spokesman for Edinburgh Airport said: "It's disappointing that we are in this situation despite meeting the request of our unions - an 11% pay rise along with a £1,000 cost of living payment. We believe this is a fair and competitive offer and one that was asked for by both of our recognised unions through our collective bargaining arrangement. Both said they would recommend the offer to members.
"One union saw overwhelming support for the agreed offer and we cannot understand why Unite campaigned against and rejected the very offer they asked us for.
"We have sought clarity on Unite’s membership numbers given the tight nature of the result where the vote against was carried by less than 1% of the membership, and we have raised serious concerns about the integrity of the ballot and the number of members that voted.
"We hope to resolve these issues at our scheduled ACAS meeting to allow us to deliver the wage rise and cost of living payment that we want to pay our team."
Commenting on the comparison between London Gatwick Airport, he continued: "We appreciate that the offer being made at Gatwick is a good one but if we really want to compare this to the offer being made at Edinburgh then it must be taken in context.
"Despite the challenges of Covid this will be the third pay rise given to the team at Edinburgh Airport since 2020. This is the first offer made by Gatwick in the same timeframe.
"This means that the Edinburgh team would have received an overall pay increase of 19.6% over the same time."
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