Unite asks air passengers to ‘pack less’

12th February 2010

Passengers at airports across the UK and Europe will today (12 February) be asked to pack less in their bags to prevent the high levels of injuries to baggage handlers who lift the equivalent to the weight of an elephant every day.

Unite’s 'pack less' campaign is calling on airlines to introduce a maximum individual bag weight of 23kg, a call backed by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) Aviation Industry Committee and the International Air Transport Association (IATA). The current limit is 32kg per bag.

Steve Turner, Unite national officer, said:

“Passengers across the UK and Europe are being asked to pack less in their bags. Most people think that baggage handling is fully automated, while the reality is that a bag can be manually lifted up to a dozen times on its journey.

“Baggage handlers lift the equivalent of the weight of an elephant every day. They are five times more likely than any other worker to suffer serious injuries - that unfortunately can lead to permanent disability - because they are forced to handle very heavy bags in often cramped conditions.”

Unite is also calling on the government and the HSE to do more to protect baggage handlers.

For the full press release, please see the Unite website.