British Airways Labor Dispute

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Recommended: Opportunities and Challenges Faced by Aviation Industry

1. Introduction

Since the 1980s the situation in the civil aviation industry has changed dramatically, and although the government still retains some form of in-direct control over the aviation sector and the ‘former’ national airlines in specific, issues related to economization and efficiency of the business enterprise take primacy in dictating strategic and operational decisions of the airline operators. This shift in the approach to the regulation of the aviation sector around the globe has also greatly influenced issues related to workforce organization in this industry, especially in the Western world.

In this report, the shift in the approach to employee relations will be discussed based on the case of one of world’s biggest airlines – British Airways. A concise environmental analysis will be presented with a special focus on the implications the changing political, economic, industrial, legislative, social and technical conditions had on employee relations. Further indications of the progress within the employee relations strategy that relates to building the ‘new model’ of workplace arrangements concerned with partnership, employee involvement, training and rising skills, will be explored.

2. Environmental Analysis

Various macro- and micro-environmental factors influenced the way British aviation industry and specifically British Airways organizes its business operations nowadays. This in turn has strong implications on the way the company approaches its workforce arrangements. In this section the main environmental forces that are in a continuous state of flux will be presented – political, economic, industrial, legal, social and technological issues (The Times, 2010).

2.1. Political and legal factors

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...The Observer, Last Accessed: http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2010/jan/31/ba-cost-cuts-cabin-crew

Office of National Statistics 2010 Economy, Last Accessed: http://www.statistics.gov.uk/hub/business-energy/index.html

Purcell J., (1987), Mapping management styles in employee relations, Journal of Management Studies, Vol 24, No5.

Rose, E. (2008) (3rd edition). Employment Relations, London: Prentice Hall.

Telegraph.co.uk, (2008), ‘Heathrow Terminal 5: British Airways to cancel flights all week.’ Last Accessed: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/1583288/Heathrow-Terminal-5-British-Airways-to-cancel-flights-all-week.html

The Times, April 2009

The Times, August 2010

The Times, December 2010

The Times, September 2011

The Times, (2010), SLEPT Analysis, Last Accessed: http://www.thetimes100.co.uk/theory/theory--slept-analysis--235.php

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