BT Group PLC (LSE:BT.A) said it was “disappointed” but respected the decision of its staff members to strike after the Communication Workers Union (CWU) served notice.
Strike action is expected to take place on Tuesday 30 and Wednesday 31 August.
Workers rejected what they said was an “incredibly low” £1,500 flat-rate pay rise offered by the company, averaging around a 5% increase at a time when UK inflation hovered close to 10%.
The CWU noted that BT made £1.3bn of profit after tax in the past year, while “many workers who made that profit rely on food banks and don’t know how they will pay their bills”.
In response today, BT confirmed it won’t be re-opening the 2022 pay review, and despite not reaching any form of consensus, both sides remain committed to further dialogue.
The FTSE 100 company said it will look to reduce the impact of industrial action by postponing any non-essential planned engineering or software updates, for example.
“We know that our colleagues are dealing with the impacts of high inflation and, although we’re disappointed, we respect their decision to strike,” a spokesperson said.
“We have made the best pay award we could and we are in constant discussions with the CWU to find a way forward from here.”
“In the meantime, we will continue to work to minimise any disruption and keep our customers and the country connected.”