British Airways could face legal action if it decides to remove the travel perks of cabin crew who took part in the recent strikes according to legal experts at Browne Jacobson.

According to media reports British Airways has confirmed that cabin crew who took part in the Unite union's three-day strike will forfeit their travel perks permanently.

James Tait, an employment law specialist at Browne Jacobson, said:

"Retracting non contractual benefits in this way could give rise to action, depending on how it is done. 

"Employers owe all of their employees the well known duty of trust and confidence. 

"It could be argued that taking benefits away for disagreeing with their employer is seen as a breach of this duty. 

"They could also argue that they are being subjected to a detriment for raising a genuine concern which could in turn lead to a successful Employment Tribunal claim.

"Employers also need to be careful about continually providing benefits on an ongoing basis. 

"If perks or bonuses are regularly provided on an ongoing basis, and the employees can point to a legitimate expectation to receive them over a period of time, then it might be argued that such benefits have become contractual over time and so retracting them unilaterally is unlawful."