LONDON--A three-day strike by many of British Airways' cabin crews will go ahead after union talks with management collapsed, leaving the ruling Labour government with a major headache weeks before a general election.
The strike begins on Saturday and is likely to disrupt travel plans for thousands. It risks embarrassing Prime Minister Gordon Brown because the Unite union organising the action is Labour's biggest single financial backer. Brown, who had earlier called the strike "unjustified and deplorable", demanded that it be called off at once.
Meanwhile railway signal workers added to the government's problems by voting to strike over job cuts and changes to working practices, raising the threat of a first national rail strike in 16 years. They did not name a date.
Labour, which is trailing in opinion surveys ahead of an election widely expected to be called for May 6, has strong union ties that go back to its foundation in 1900. Unite's political director is Charlie Whelan, Brown's former spokesman.
Opposition Conservative leader David Cameron has accused Brown of failing to stand up to Unite and compared the situation to the 1970s, which saw periods of severe industrial unrest under Labour. His party have launched a billboard campaign entitled "Cash Gordon", featuring a picture of Brown clutching a fistful of union-supplied bank notes behind his back.
"When the crunch comes, he can only act in the union interest, not in the national interest," Cameron said this week.
Tony Woodley, Unite's joint general secretary, told reporters that the BA cabin crews who are in dispute would go on strike at midnight for three days, and then again from March 27 to March 30, just as the Easter holiday season begins. Woodley said "hawks" within BA who wanted confrontation had won the day, including chief executive Willie Walsh.
"I think it is a classic case of Mr Walsh unfortunately being one of the hawks who is looking for a war with our members as opposed to a negotiated settlement," he said.
The airline wants to save an annual 62.5 million pounds ($95 million) to help cope with a fall in demand, volatile fuel prices and increased competition from low-cost carriers. In full-page newspaper advertisements on Friday, Walsh said a "significant number" of cabin crew would work during the strike and the majority of BA staff did not support the action.
Brown's spokesman said the prime minister believed the strike is in no-one's interest and will cause unacceptable inconvenience to passengers. "He urges the strike be called off immediately. He also urges BA's management and workforce to get together without delay to resolve what is a dispute about jobs and wages."
