Flight attendants angry over feedback
British Airways cabin crew have voted to take industrial action over a new feedback system where passengers are invited to review their performance on the spot.
The British Airlines Stewards and Stewardesses Association has called on the airline to scrap the system, which includes staff league tables and shows red warning lights if a cabin crew member’s performance has been rated as poor, The Guardian reported.
In a recent vote, 91 per cent of the association’s 8800 members backed action short of a strike. Cabin crew will instead decline to engage with the new system, and will refuse to sign off the feedback forms.
Unite, the union which encompasses the association, said cabin crew have been receiving poor feedback from passengers for situations which are not their fault, such as problems with the entertainment system or air conditioning.
‘‘A perfectly adequate performance management policy already exists,’’ Unite regional officer Matt Smith told The Guardian.
‘‘It is completely unfair to expect them to be placed in a league table, competing against each other, over onboard issues that are clearly out of their control.’’
British Airways assured customers they would experience ‘‘no inconvenience’’ as a result of the action. ‘‘The system we have recently introduced includes feedback from customers about how they are looked after onboard,’’ the airline said.
‘‘This sort of feedback is common in all industries and enables us to commend cabin crew who perform well and support those that need to improve.
‘‘We remain open to discussions with our cabin crew and their union representatives about this new system.’’