About 4,000 workers at Heathrow Airport, members of Unite, have rejected the company’s holiday pay offer and imposed cuts to terms and conditions in a consultative ballot. 

Heathrow Airport Limited has been told of the union’s intention to proceed to a full industrial action ballot of the entire membership.

Members are angry at being “cheated” out of holiday pay, Unite said.

Accusing Heathrow of “making every worker poorer”, Unite has warned that a strike by HAL’s security staff, fire-fighters, airfield operators and engineers will cause travel chaos for passengers over the busy Christmas period.

The industrial action ballot of Unite members, who voted by a 94 per cent majority to reject the company’s offer in the consultative ballot, opens on Wednesday, September 27th and closes around Wednesday, October 18th.

Unite regional coordinating officer, Wayne King said: “HAL needs to sit up and take notice.

“We are deeply disappointed that, despite many months of trying to settle this dispute, including at the conciliation service, Acas, HAL has flatly rejected several of the union’s reasonable proposals.”