British Airways cabin crew to stage four-day strike from next week

British Airways cabin crew will go on a new strike over a pay dispute from next week, the Unite union said on Friday (10 February).

The walkout, which will begin at midnight on 17 February, will last for four days and end at 11.59pm GMT on the following Monday the union added.

Unite said it had urged the airline to enter talks at the conciliation service Acas and reach an agreement to avoid further strikes next week. It is in a dispute over poverty pay involving the airline's mixed fleet cabin crew – who work on long and short haul destinations.

The strike is the latest in a series of walkouts that has seen British Airways cabin crew strike between 5 and 7 February as well as the ongoing three-day industrial action, which is due to end on 11 February.

Meanwhile, previous strike action on 10 and 11 January, resulted in a "very small number" of flights to and from London Heathrow merging together to cope with the fallout.

The walkouts have led to the cancellation of flights and forced the airline to charter from other airlines such as Titan Airways, Vueling and Thomson Airways to cover striking cabin crew.

"British Airways should focus on addressing poverty pay in its mixed fleet, rather than continuing to waste hundreds of thousands of pounds on chartering in aircraft to cover striking workers," said Unite national officer Oliver Richardson.

"Despite the bully boy tactics, the threats and the sanctions, our members in British Airways mixed fleet have continued to show great resolve in their fight for better pay. Mixed fleet cabin crew are the future of British Airways and deserve better.

"We would urge British Airways to join us at reconvened Acas talks and negotiate a settlement to avoid the cost and disruption of a further four days of strike action."

According to the union, since 2010 all British Airways new cabin crew employees join what is called "mixed fleet", where despite promises that pay would be 10% higher than the market rate, basic pay starts at just £12,192 with £3 an hour flying pay.

Unite estimates that on average "mixed fleet" cabin crew earn £16,000, including allowances, a year.