UK pilots’ union BALPA has called off a three-day strike at Bristow Helicopters that was scheduled to begin on 3 March as a mark of respect following a fatal Sikorsky S-92 crash off the Norwegian coast in which a crew member died.
UK pilots’ union BALPA has called off a three-day strike at Bristow Helicopters that was scheduled to begin on 3 March as a mark of respect following a fatal Sikorsky S-92 crash off the Norwegian coast in which a crew member died.
However, BALPA warns that further planned three-day strikes will go ahead later in the month unless it reaches a resolution with the helicopter operator over a pay dispute.
The row affects pilots and other crew members working for both the search and rescue and offshore businesses of Bristow in the UK and follows a ballot that returned a 96% yes vote on an almost 93% turnout, according to BALPA.
BALPA says it has been in negotiation with the company for a year, but Bristow has “refused to accept every element of the union’s reasonable pay claim”.
General secretary Amy Leversidge says Bristow crews “operate in some of the most treacherous and challenging conditions transporting workers to the oil and gas rigs in the North Sea and providing vital search and rescue services”.
She adds: “Despite years of pay freezes and cuts they have remained dedicated to their jobs and have supported the company in difficult times.”
She says that Bristow’s peers have all made acceptable pay offers to their employees.
Leversidge says “every effort” will be made to avoid a risk to safety by ensuring that some search and rescue bases or crews remain operational during strike days.
Bristow did not respond to an invitation to comment.
The US-headquartered company will report its full-year results on 5 March. During the firm’s third-quarter results presentation in November, chief executive Chris Bradshaw said Bristow had faced supply chain challenges, particularly with delays in spare parts for its S-92s, which had left it with fewer “serviceable” examples of the type than it needed.
