Strikes confirmed at Edinburgh Airport over Christmas and New Year

Workers with North Air - who fuel up planes - plan to walkout from the 18th of December

Author: Paul ReillyPublished 10th Dec 2024
Last updated 10th Dec 2024

Edinburgh Airport is set to be hit by strike action for 19 consecutive days over Christmas.

Workers with North Air - who fuel up planes - plan to walkout from the 18th of December until January 6 after rejecting a 4.5% pay offer.

The Unite union claims it will mean significant travel disruption, including prestigious routes like United Airlines to New York and Emirates to Dubai along with Loganair’s domestic routes to the islands could be directly impacted.

Sharon Graham, Unite general secretary said: “North Air is a highly profitable company that can fully afford to make a fair offer to our members but has refused to do so.“Unite will always support our members in their fight for better jobs, pay and conditions.”

A spokesperson for North Air said: “We are disappointed at Unite’s decision to proceed with industrial action at Edinburgh Airport.

“We successfully concluded negotiations with Unite at six other sites ahead of the annual review this summer, which has seen colleagues across the business receive a 4.5% increase in pay - significantly above current levels of inflation.

“We remain open to discussion and are committed to working with all parties to minimise the impact of any strike action over the festive period.”

An Edinburgh Airport spokesperson said: "We are disappointed that the two parties cannot reach a solution and urge them to continue discussions.

"We're working with our airlines to understand their contingencies to minimise passenger disruption."

First for all the latest news from across the UK every hour on Hits Radio Chilled on DAB, online and on the Rayo app.