London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Friday, Oct 17, 2025

Heathrow Airport Expansion Announced Amid BA Cleaners' Strike Action

Heathrow Airport Expansion Announced Amid BA Cleaners' Strike Action

As Heathrow prepares for significant infrastructure upgrades, British Airways cleaners announce strike due to low wages.
Cleaners employed by OCS at British Airways’ offices at Heathrow Airport have announced plans to strike from February 25 to 28, pending negotiations regarding pay.

The union, Unite, claims that many of these workers earn below the living wage and are compelled to rely on food banks due to their poverty-level salaries.

OCS, a cleaning firm that works for British Airways, is currently paying some of its 50,000 employees the legal minimum wage of £11.44 an hour, despite being accredited by the Living Wage Foundation nationwide, which sets salaries at £13.85 per hour in London.

Unite general secretary Sharon Graham criticized OCS and British Airways for their wage practices, stating that while both companies are highly profitable, they fail to compensate staff fairly.

In 2023, OCS reported operating profits of £28.3 million, and British Airways' parent company, International Airlines Group (IAG), achieved £1.7 billion in profit during the peak summer season last year.

Graham emphasized the inconsistency in OCS's claims of being a living wage employer, given that many workers are not receiving that wage.

Martin West, a Unite regional officer, noted that there is still opportunity to avert the strike if OCS presents a fair pay offer.

The union has indicated plans for escalating industrial action should negotiations fail to result in satisfactory outcomes.

In related news, Heathrow Airport's CEO Thomas Woldbye unveiled a multibillion-pound investment strategy intended to expand the airport's infrastructure and enhance its capacity.

This initiative includes upgrades for Terminals 2 and 5, a reconfiguration of the airfield layout, and improvements to bus and coach connections.

Woldbye stated this investment program represents the largest private investment in the UK transport network to date and is driven by the necessity for greater capacity at Heathrow to maintain the UK’s status as a global trading hub.

The announcement came in the context of recent political support for a third runway at Heathrow, highlighted in a recent speech by Chancellor Rachel Reeves.

Woldbye expressed concerns that failure to expand would jeopardize the UK’s competitive edge internationally, citing comparable capacities at airports in other major European cities.

Heathrow’s proposed expansion is expected to create significant demand for UK-made steel, with Woldbye confirming a commitment to work with local communities to ensure transparency regarding the expansion’s impact.

He further reiterated that no taxpayer money will fund these developments, asserting that the investment will be entirely privately financed.

The Department for Business and Trade has welcomed the investment announcement as a strong endorsement of the UK’s industrial strategy.

UK Steel has also acknowledged the potential economic benefits of this investment for British steelmaking industries.

However, critics, including the No 3rd Runway Coalition, have raised concerns about the feasibility and economic justification of the proposed expansion plans.

Furthermore, Heathrow reported its busiest January on record in 2023, with over 6.3 million passengers using the four terminals, reflecting a 5% increase from the previous year, with robust growth noted in transatlantic travel.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
U.S. Chamber Sues Trump Over $100,000 H-1B Visa Fee
Shenzhen Expo Spotlights China’s Quantum Step in Semiconductor Self-Reliance
China Accelerates to the Forefront in Global Nuclear Fusion Race
Yachts, Private Jets, and a Picasso Painting: Exposed as 'One of the Largest Frauds in History'
Australia’s Wedgetail Spies Aid NATO Response as Russian MiGs Breach Estonian Airspace
McGowan Urges Chalmers to Cut Spending Over Tax Hike to Close $20 Billion Budget Gap
Victoria Orders Review of Transgender Prison Placement Amid Safety Concerns for Female Inmates
U.S. Treasury Mobilises New $20 Billion Debt Facility to Stabilise Argentina
French Business Leaders Decry Budget as Macron’s Pro-Enterprise Promise Undermined
Trump Claims Modi Pledged India Would End Russian Oil Imports Amid U.S. Tariff Pressure
Surging AI Startup Valuations Fuel Bubble Concerns Among Top Investors
Australian Punter Archie Wilson Tears Up During Nebraska Press Conference, Sparking Conversation on Male Vulnerability
Australia Confirms U.S. Access to Upgraded Submarine Shipyard Under AUKUS Deal
“Firepower” Promised for Ukraine as NATO Ministers Meet — But U.S. Tomahawks Remain Undecided
Brands Confront New Dilemma as Extremists Adopt Fashion Labels
The Sydney Sweeney and Jeans Storm: “The Outcome Surpassed Our Wildest Dreams”
Erika Kirk Delivers Moving Tribute at White House as Trump Awards Charlie Presidential Medal of Freedom
British Food Influencer ‘Big John’ Detained in Australia After Visa Dispute
ScamBodia: The Chinese Fraud Empire Shielded by Cambodia’s Ruling Elite
French PM Suspends Macron’s Pension Reform Until After 2027 in Bid to Stabilize Government
Orange, Bouygues and Free Make €17 Billion Bid for Drahi’s Altice France Telecom Assets
Dutch Government Seizes Chipmaker After U.S. Presses for Removal of Chinese CEO
Bessent Accuses China of Dragging Down Global Economy Amid New Trade Curbs
U.S. Revokes Visas of Foreign Nationals Who ‘Celebrated’ Charlie Kirk’s Assassination
AI and Cybersecurity at Forefront as GITEX Global 2025 Kicks Off in Dubai
DJI Loses Appeal to Remove Pentagon’s ‘Chinese Military Company’ Label
EU Deploys New Biometric Entry/Exit System: What Non-EU Travelers Must Know
Australian Prime Minister’s Private Number Exposed Through AI Contact Scraper
Ex-Microsoft Engineer Confirms Famous Windows XP Key Was Leaked Corporate License, Not a Hack
China’s lesson for the US: it takes more than chips to win the AI race
Australia Faces Demographic Risk as Fertility Falls to Record Low
California County Reinstates Mask Mandate in Health Facilities as Respiratory Illness Risk Rises
Israel and Hamas Agree to First Phase of Trump-Brokered Gaza Truce, Hostages to Be Freed
French Political Turmoil Elevates Marine Le Pen as Rassemblement National Poised for Power
China Unveils Sweeping Rare Earth Export Controls to Shield ‘National Security’
The Davos Set in Decline: Why the World Economic Forum’s Power Must Be Challenged
France: Less Than a Month After His Appointment, the New French Prime Minister Resigns
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán stated that Hungary will not adopt the euro because the European Union is falling apart.
Sarah Mullally Becomes First Woman Appointed Archbishop of Canterbury
Mayor in western Germany in intensive care after stabbing
Australian government pays Deloitte nearly half a million dollars for a report built on fabricated quotes, fake citations, and AI-generated nonsense.
US Prosecutors Gained Legal Approval to Hack Telegram Servers
Macron Faces Intensifying Pressure to Resign or Trigger New Elections Amid France’s Political Turmoil
Standard Chartered Names Roberto Hoornweg as Sole Head of Corporate & Investment Banking
UK Asylum Housing Firm Faces Backlash Over £187 Million Profits and Poor Living Conditions
UK Police Crack Major Gang in Smuggling of up to 40,000 Stolen Phones to China
BYD’s UK Sales Soar Nearly Nine-Fold, Making Britain Its Biggest Market Outside China
Trump Proposes Farm Bailout from Tariff Revenues Amid Backlash from Other Industries
FIFA Accuses Malaysia of Forging Citizenship Documents, Suspends Seven Footballers
Latvia to Bar Tourist and Occasional Buses to Russia and Belarus Until 2026
×