British Airways backs out of compensation offer to entire sacked Hong Kong crew

The airline promises to amend its offered package and extend the deadline for acceptance

85 British Airways staff are receiving an amended compensation package, after the company sacked its entire Hong Kong crew ahead of a base closure in the city. Dozens of the crew picketed BA's offices last week because of the mass firing. The airline has since notified the employees by email that it will be revisiting its offer and increasing their deadline for acceptance to next Friday October 5. The email, sent on Saturday September 29, said BA would amend its ex gratia offer but added: "The content of the agreement will see very little change but will include clarity on the numbers." It did not state when that offer would be made, however. BA shifted its position following a protest by members of the BA Hong Kong International Cabin Crew Association and other unions. The association's general secretary Carol Ng Man-yee described the extended deadline as "still unreasonable."

She said: "Assuming the earliest they would be able to give the new offer is early next week, that still leaves us a few days to respond.

"How do they expect us to be able to get a legal opinion in such a short time? It’s totally unreasonable.

"There had been rumours about closing the Hong Kong base in recent years. We had expected doomsday to come one day, but we had not expected BA to handle it in such an ugly manner.

"It is betraying the staff members who have been so loyal to the company.

"It would be naive for the company to think they can stop us from staging protests if they can fire us all quickly. There are still many ways of resistance. And they have not seen anything yet."

All 85 of the airline's staff operating out of its Hong Kong base were sacked on Wednesday September 26. 61 of that number work on permanent terms, four of which were on sick leave and did not receive their letters of dismissal on the same day as their colleagues. Regardless, they are still being forced to adhere to the same deadlines. Civic Party lawmaker Jeremy Tam Man-ho was one of the speakers at the protest, according to the South China Morning Post he said: "The longest-serving employee has worked with the company for 32 years, yet in return they are only given three-and-a-half days’ notice ... Why are they being treated like they’re disposable?” BA identified the Hong Kong - Heathrow route, which it flies twice a day, as underperforming at its half-year financial earnings meeting with analysts. Last year British Airways ran an operating profit of £1.77 billion.