London - Talks between British Airways (BA) and trade union representatives over pay and long-term cost-cutting measures appeared to be deadlocked Wednesday, raising the spectre of industrial action over the summer months, reports said. BA Wednesday called in the conciliation service Acas to mediate between the two sides after crucial talks ended without agreement late Tuesday, the airline said.
The BA management had set a June 30 deadline for the negotiations, which included securing a two-year pay freeze for cabin staff and more than 3,500 further redundancies.
Analysts said that BA, which ran up a pre-tax loss of 401 million pounds (659 million dollars) in 2008, was seeking "permanent changes to employment contracts" - something unions were rejecting.
While trade unions were prepared to make "short-term sacrifices" to help the airline beat the recession, they were not interested in "re-negotiating fundamental contracts."
BA chief executive Willie Walsh has described the current round of talks as part of BA's "fight for life." He has appealed to the airline's 40,000 staff to work without pay for a month or to take unpaid leave to help it overcome crisis.
Walsh himself has agreed to work unpaid in July, forgoing his month's salary of 61,000 pounds.
Last week, some 800 workers said they would volunteer to work for nothing for up to a month, while thousands said they would take unpaid leave or work part-time.
