UK's busiest airport hit by walkout

The United Kingdom's busiest airport, London Heathrow, will be hit by a strike during the Easter holiday, with more than 1,400 security officers employed by Heathrow Airports Ltd, or HAL, taking part in 10 days of industrial action until April 9.

Wayne King, regional coordinating officer for the Unite union that called the strike, said it would likely cause "huge disruption and delays", primarily at Terminal 5, which is used exclusively by British Airways.

However, Heathrow claimed on Monday it was operating normally and that its security lanes were "free flowing".

According to the FlyerTalk internet forum for frequent flyers, some passengers departing from Heathrow said security checks were smoother and calmer than expected.

"We arrived four hours ahead of our flight to avoid chaos but passed through to the air side in just 20 minutes," recalled Zhang Youyou, who flew to Switzerland on the first day of the strike.

Heathrow has reportedly drafted in 1,000 extra workers to assist passengers as a part of its contingency plans. Additionally, British Airways was asked to cancel 5 percent of its flights and stop selling new seats during the strike, in order to reduce congestion.

Sixteen short-haul round trips are being canceled daily, affecting 5,000 passengers each day, the Independent newspaper reported.

The strike was called after last-ditch talks between Unite and HAL failed to resolve a dispute over pay.

HAL had offered a 10-percent pay rise, but the union argued it was a "real terms pay cut" because the current retail prices index, which measures the monthly change in the cost of goods and services, is running at 13.4 percent.

The union has also mentioned the pay gap between John Holland-Kaye, Heathrow's chief executive, and its security guards, pointing out that the boss's annual salary in 2021 soared by 88 percent, to 1.5 million pounds ($1.87 million), while employees "working endless shifts", earned an average of 30,000 pounds ($37,424) a year.

Sharon Graham, Unite's general secretary, said: "Heathrow can afford to pay a decent pay rise to its workers. This is a wealthy company (that) is about to return to bumper profits."

The airport has been dealing with several pay disputes, ever since returning to normal operations in 2022 after restrictions triggered by the COVID-19 pandemic were lifted. Aviation fuel services staff and ground handlers called for walkouts in their pay disputes during the summer and Christmas holiday period.

At the same time, passport office workers across the UK have gone on strike over jobs, pay, and pensions, with industrial action set to continue for five weeks between April 3 and May 5. That strike has cast another shadow over the Easter holiday weekend and the upcoming summer holiday season and could mean people face long waits to renew their passports.

Zheng Wanyin contributed to this story.