Border Force staff at Heathrow to take further strike action

The 650 PCS members who work in passport control at terminals 2, 3, 4 and 5 at Heathrow have been in dispute with their employer after a new roster was imposed in April.

Since then, around 160 staff have left because of the lack of flexibility and changes to the shifts. Read personal testimonies from the members. Women and those with caring responsibilities have been particularly affected by these changes, and the new roster has seen long-standing and loyal staff forced out of employment in order to manage childcare and family commitments. New staff have been refused flexible working applications, despite changes to the law allowing employees to make a statutory request for permanent changes to their contract from day one.

The members have already taken seven days of strike action in April, May and June, and action short of a strike that included a work to rule and overtime ban.

The new strike dates announced are four days from August 31 to 3 September, which will be followed by another work-to-rule and overtime ban until 22 September.

PCS general secretary Fran Heathcote said: “Our hard-working members at Heathrow take great pride in keeping our country’s border safe, but many are being forced out of the job they love.

“They’re being told by managers to choose between caring responsibilities and their job, which is no choice at all. The only reason they’re being forced to choose is because their managers are forcing them.

“We know our strike action is likely to cause serious disruption to travellers using Heathrow at the end of the summer, but the strike can be avoided if the employer listens to the concerns of our members.”