Scotland’s two largest airports are facing a potential strike ahead of the summer travel season.
The BBC reported this week that around 300 workers at Edinburgh Airport and a similar number at Glasgow Airport turned down labor agreements offered by their employer, Menzies Aviation, which provides aircraft and ground handling services at both facilities.
The staff includes dispatchers, allocators, and flight manifest controllers, among others.
Unite, the union representing the workers, told the BBC it could hold a vote on a strike unless Menzies put forward a better offer.
“Summer strike action looms over Edinburgh and Glasgow airports because the pay offers on the table from Menzies Aviation aren’t good enough,” said Unite industrial officer Carrie Binnie. “Menzies Aviation has the ability to improve its offers and they can easily resolve this pay dispute without any disruption to the traveling public. If the company fails to table a better offer to our members, Unite will have no option but to ballot our members for strikes over the summer holidays.”
According to the BBC, the workers at Edinburgh rejected a proposed raise of 4%, while the workers at Glasgow turned down a 4.25% raise.
Phil Lloyd, UK senior vice president at Menzies, said the company has invited Unite members back to the negotiating table and wants to work out a new deal.
Edinburgh Airport is the busiest airport in Scotland and the sixth-busiest in the U.K. It served about 15.8 million passengers in 2024. The airport has added new routes ahead of this summer, including a JetBlue service to and from Boston and an Emirates flight linking Edinburgh and Dubai.
Glasgow Airport is the second-busiest airport in Scotland. It saw about 8 million passengers last year.
