The past few years have seen post-pandemic travel chaos as airlines, airports and rail services across the country struggled to manage the demand. In 2023, many travellers had their adventures from airports across the UK impacted due to a series of strikes, as border force workers took action over pay and working conditions. However, airports such as Heathrow did turn to contingency plans, avoiding some challenges.
While staff numbers have steadily increased to cope with demand, the cost of living crisis – largely caused by inflation and unforeseen multi-industry price hikes as a consequence of global and political issues – is the main reason for the latest sweep of walkouts. Here’s what we know so far about the ongoing travel strikes, how they may impact your journey, and what can be done to ease the pre-holiday stress. In 2024, there are strikes planned at Heathrow between August and September.
On Friday 16 August, the Public and Commercial Services Union (PCS) announced that around 650 UK border force members will take further strike action at Heathrow. The new walkouts concern enforced changes to staff rotas and come after roughly 160 staff members left due to a lack of flexibility. At the time of writing (Friday 23 August), the strikes are planned from Saturday 31 August to Tuesday 3 September.
This will be followed by another work-to-rule and overtime ban until Sunday 22 September, potentially causing further disruption to travellers as the school holidays come to an end. PCS general secretary Fran Heathcote said, “Our hard-working members at Heathrow take great pride in keeping our country’s border safe, but many are being forced out of the job they love. “They’re being told by managers to choose between caring responsibilities and their job, which is no choice at all.
The only reason they’re being forced to choose is because their managers are forcing them. “We know our strike action is likely to cause serious disruption to travellers using Heathrow at the end of the summer, but the strike can be avoided if the employer listens to the concerns of our members.” It's always possible, but Heathrow will implement as many measures as possible to avoid disruption.
The 2023 Heathrow strikes, for example, were cancelled, and the transport hub's CEO, John Holland-Kaye, announced that even when walkouts are planned, he did not anticipate any flight delays or cancellations. It is unclear whether flights will be cancelled or delayed during the August and September 2024 strikes, but here's hoping that Heathrow has worked to create similar contingency plans as last year's. If your flight is cancelled, check out some of our tips on what to do – including rebookings and how to get compensation .
If you find yourself travelling during a UK airport strike, it is best to check the airport website for advice on how early you should arrive before your departure. The official line from Heathrow Airport remains unchanged; “Passengers should aim to arrive no earlier than two hours before departure time for short-haul flights and three hours for long-haul.” These guidelines take into account the time before departure that check-in desks open.
Standing around waiting is not encouraged in a bustling airport terminal, but arriving early to avoid any issues with parking or check-in desk changes helps the process. Head of The Points Guy Nicky Kelvin also advises checking your flight weeks and days before departure to ensure they haven't been cancelled at the last minute. He says, “There are a number of websites which help with this, including FlightRadar24 , which will allow passengers to locate their aircraft and where it is located into the run-up to their departure.
X, formerly Twitter, is also a great resource to see what it’s like live on the ground in the airport and get a heads up on huge queues the situation develops.” Planning on arriving early or don’t have a suitcase to check in? Many of the UK’s major airports have lounges – settle in for a couple of hours and enjoy complimentary meals, snacks and alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages..
