Around 700 ground-handling, airside transport, and cargo workers will go on strike for three days beginning November 18.
Hundreds of Heathrow airport employees are planning a walkout in the run-up to the FIFA World Cup in order to demand higher pay.
The Unite union announced on Friday that 700 workers employed by the Emirates Group’s airport services subsidiary Dubai National Air Travel Agency (Dnata) and Menzies will go on strike for three days beginning November 18.
The World Cup 2022 will begin three days later, on November 20, in Qatar.
Qatar Airways, which has added 10 flights per week during the football tournament, will be particularly impacted. Kevin Hall, regional officer for Unite, said in a statement: “Strike action will inevitably cause disruption, delays and cancellations to flights throughout Heathrow, with travellers to the World Cup particularly affected.”
The strike action at Europe’s busiest airport will lead to disruptions, cancellations and delays at Heathrow terminals 2, 3 and 4.
Other airlines, including Virgin, Singapore Airlines, Cathay-Pacific and Emirates, will also be affected, said Unite.
“We are aware of proposed industrial action from Dnata and Menzies colleagues at Heathrow, and we are in discussions with our airline partners on what contingency plans they can implement to support their ground handling should the strike go ahead,” a Heathrow spokesperson told the BBC.
The competition in Doha will be the first World Cup to be held in the Middle East.
More than 1.2 million people are expected to attend the event.