Allowances
In a case brought by pilots’ association BALPA under the CAR regulations, pilots claimed that holiday pay should be based on their basic pay plus the payments that go to make up their normal monthly wage. These are the payments per hour when pilots are in the air and the taxable segments of allowances paid when pilots are away from their base. The EAT ruled that although the regulations do not specify how holiday pay is calculated, whatever arrangement is made has to comply with the Working Time Directive because domestic law has to comply with Community law.
The case went all the way to the European Court of Justice which confirmed that they were entitled to receive their usual pay supplements as part of their holiday pay (British Airways v Williams & others UKEAT/0377/07).
During the proceedings in British Airways v Williams & others, BALPA indicated that it also had tribunals lodged against Virgin, BMI, easyJet and Cityflyer, although some employers, like Monarch “had the foresight to reach agreement with us on this issue”. The union predicted that the UK’s 12,000 pilots and 30,000 cabin crew stood to benefit. It would also be making the case that in the UK the civil aviation regulations should be amended to give workers in the industry “the same right to proper holiday pay that everyone else get”.
British Airways v Williams & others UKEAT/0377/07