Unite the union is warning of disruption for Heathrow travellers after lorry drivers who deliver in-flight food, drink and duty free have voted to strike later this month.
HGV drivers employed by Alpha LSG, who supply 29 airlines including American Airlines, Air Canada, Etihad, Singapore Airlines and Qatar Airways, have voted for strike action over the imposition of ‘punishing’ new rotas.
They are walking out from 00.01 on Wednesday 22 May until 23.59 Sunday 26 May.
United said 87% of the workers that took part in the ballot voted for strike action.
Unite regional officer Jayesh Mistry said: "Alpha LSG at Heathrow has imposed a punishing new shift pattern on its drivers. The new rosters are taking a heavy toll on the workers’ wellbeing.
"The company are treating workers with contempt by trying to force them to work an extra 12 weekends a year. It’s an attack on family life and the drivers are fighting back. They are getting shorter rest breaks plus increased workloads are piling pressure on the workforce.
"The drivers have raised their serious concerns but so far the company has refused to listen. Unite is meeting the Alpha LSG next week and we hope this overwhelming vote for strike action will act as a wake-up call for management.
"A strike will cause major disruption to a number of international airlines at Heathrow. Alpha LSG is treating its workforce with contempt but they are also putting the airlines it serves at risk of severe and unnecessary disruption. It’s time for Alpha LSG to remember its duty of care and resolve this dispute."
But a spokesman for Alpha LSG said new roster patterns were necessary to meet the operational needs of its current business and are based on flight schedules.
"We have been in discussions for over six months with local union representatives. We have held meetings with our drivers and taken on board comments about the work rosters, making alterations in line with some of the feed-back," said the spokesman.
"Unite has never previously raised concerns in respect of work-life balance to this work pattern, until it was introduced across our entire Heathrow operation. The rest breaks in our roster meet all the legal requirements.
"We are immensely disappointed that Unite has escalated this with the unnecessary threat of strike action. We were in talks with Unite yesterday and continue our negotiations. However, from March 22nd to April 18th we wrote to Jayesh Mistry, Unite Regional Officer, on three separate occasions offering to meet and discuss a way forward but received no response.
"We remain fully committed to resolving this issue and ensuring there will be no inconvenience to our customers at London-Heathrow. Alpha LSG meanwhile is fully committed to investing in its workforce. Our business recently took the decision to step away from being a National Living Wage employer, which comes into effect in November 2019, and we are currently working on a number of initiatives to support health and wellbeing in the workplace."
