Iberia will keep unions informed on BA merger

Iberia, the Spanish airline, has agreed to trade union requests to set up a body which will regularly inform the two main union confederations, CCOO and UGT, on developments in its planned merger with the UK airline British Airways.

The social dialogue round table will meet periodically to follow the merger process and to agree in advance how to deal with the impact on jobs and working conditions. At the first meeting on 31 July, the company provided detailed information on what had been agreed up to that point.

The Spanish unions are broadly in favour of the merger. UGT spokesman Alberto Garrido, said: “British Airways does not seem a bad travelling companion for Iberia, which can’t go on alone and needs to link up with someone”.