Hunger strike threat in union row

http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/-/1/hi/northern_ireland/6959501.stm

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Four sacked security workers from Belfast International Airport who won compensation for unfair dismissal are about to go on hunger strike.

An industrial tribunal awarded almost £600,000 to 22 members of staff who went on strike in a row over pay.

However, shop stewards claim their union, the Transport and General Workers Union, failed to back them.

Four of them will go on hunger strike in London unless their union holds an inquiry and pays their legal bill.

Gordon McNeill, Madan Gupta, Chris Bowyer and Malcolm Spencer intend to begin a hunger strike at the union's headquarters, Transport House, on Thursday.

Victory celebrations

Mr McNeill said they had written to the union asking for talks after the industrial tribunal case ended in June "so that we could jointly celebrate and build on the victory we felt was coming".

He added: "We received neither acknowledgement nor reply.

"That is why we decided to go to London to begin a hunger strike demanding that, now that we have proven our point, the union give us the backing they should have given us over the past five years.

"We are very pleased that general secretary Tony Woodley has agreed to meet us on Thursday.

"If we get satisfaction from that meeting we will book flights home. If we do not we will immediately begin our hunger strike in Transport House."