The Labor Party’s stance on the strikes came under intense scrutiny last week after several front-line MPs ignored Keir Starmer’s order not to attend rallies during RMT’s three days of industrial action. Asked if he supported the plans for the BA strike, mainly by the check-in staff, by Sophie Raworth on the BBC’s Sunday Morning, Lammy said: “No, I do not. No, I do not – it is a no, it is a categorical no “. Some shadowy cabinet colleagues were outraged by Lammy’s comments, which went beyond the agreed line of support for workers’ rights to livelihoods, while insisting the government should do more to prevent strikes. In a letter to a voter involved in the controversy, first reported by the Mirror, Lammy said he had been misinformed and believed staff were pushing for a 10% pay rise. In fact, they are demanding the reinstatement of the salaries that were cut during the pandemic and are protesting against the tactics as they say “fire and re-hire” from the airline. Lammy said he had “misunderstood” Raworth’s question. “When he said that workers wanted to reverse a previous 10% pay cut, I misunderstood that he meant they were looking for wage increases above inflation,” he wrote. “I did not know the details of the case. It is right for those of us in public life to admit when we have made a mistake. With this in mind, I apologize to all BA employees. “ Subscribe to the First Edition, our free daily newsletter – every morning at 7 p.m. BST Although he did not actually confirm that he supported the proposed strike, he added that if the government had banned redundancies and re-employment as demanded by Labor, “you would not be in this miserable position to claim what is rightfully yours”. About 700 people at the Heathrow BA center represented by the GMB union voted last week in favor of labor action. Most are staff who check in and the GMB says the majority are low paid women. Lammy’s remarks on Sunday angered union leaders who had already responded negatively to the ban on Starmer picketing. Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said Sunday that “support for bad bosses is a new low for Labor.” The Guardian understands that union secretaries are due to meet with Labor leaders on Friday to sign a policy report. A party spokesman described the mood among union leaders as “crazy”. Starmer has walked away from firing any of the five front benches pictured showing solidarity with RMT voters. Instead, the Labor leader spoke to each of them and sent them a letter about their future behavior. During a visit to Sanatan Mandir Temple in Crawley, West Sussex, on Friday, Starmer said he believes the issue is closed. “I was very clear that a responsible government is bringing the negotiating parties around the table, so I followed the approach I took,” he said. “The head whip has now dealt with those who did not follow the advice and this is a completely satisfactory result.”
