Sort Out Pay Mess to Avoid Baggage Handling Strike Next Week, Union Urges SAS

LONDON, December 16 - Unite the Union has today (Wednesday) said baggage handlers and check-in
staff at one of the world's busiest airports, Heathrow, and at Aberdeen
airport, will strike next week unless there is movement on resolving a pay
dispute. The workers are employed by SAS Ground Services UK Ltd (SGS), a
wholly-owned subsidiary of SAS.

A series of 48 hour strikes will begin from 04:00 hours on Tuesday,
December 22nd until 04:00 hours on Thursday, December 24th, continuing during
the same times on Saturday, December 26th and Sunday, December 27th, 2009 and
again during the same period on Sunday, January 3rd and Monday, January 4th,
2010. The stoppages will hit travellers on Turkish, Emirates and Thai
airlines at London Heathrow and KLM, Air France, Wideroe and Atlantic at
Aberdeen.

The dispute has been forced following failure of the company to reach
agreement with the union on the 2009 pay award.

Unite is also seeking compensation for its members who have been told
that they must transfer to a new ground handling employer in the new year
with the closure of the final salary pension scheme as SAS wish to sell this
part of their business. The union is questioning the company's `cost-cutting'
business strategy given that vast bonuses were recently paid to the company
directors.

Kevin Hall, Unite regional industrial officer, said: "It is deeply
regrettable that our members have been forced into a position where they have
to threaten industrial action over the Christmas and New Year period to get
this company to play fair. A strike will cause considerable disruption to the
travelling public at a very busy time of year.

"We have been trying to get this company to move on a fair wage deal for
months now. It is obscene that they can fill the pockets of their directors
yet deny workers fair wages and a decent pension, particularly as last year
the UK workforce took job losses and pay cuts to help the company through a
difficult time.

"This a slap in the face for a loyal workforce. We appeal now to SAS to
see sense, start talking and resolve this dispute."

To help the company in 2008, UK staff accepted redundancies and a pay
deal of RPI minus 2 percent, while at Aberdeen, they took a cut of 8 percent
in wages.

The last available figures show that in 2008, Scandinavian Ground
Services UK Ltd made a profit of GBP1.2 m. Four directors received bonuses
totalling GBP193,000 in addition to their salaries.

For further information, please contact Kevin Hall on +44(0)7980-721-408