British Airways staff will get annual bonuses of up to £1,000 if the airline improves margins sufficiently.

Up to 43,000 non-management workers stand to benefit from the scheme which is based on BA's drive to double its operating margin to ten per cent - equivalent to 10p profit out of every £1 gained in revenue.

The plan - announced by chief executive Rod Eddington in BA's staff newspaper - comes as the company continues pay talks with unions.

BA said bonuses would be triggered on a sliding scale once margins exceeded six per cent - after accounting for the cost of the pay-out.

Monday July 26, 2004