The FINANCIAL -- Talks between British Airways and a cabin crew union aimed at averting a strike broke down, the airline said on March 10.

Now officials at Unite, which represents BA cabin crew, will meet on March 11 to discuss “next steps,” spokeswoman Pauline Doyle said from the union’s London headquarters, according to Bloomberg. Unite has the legal authority to announce a strike any time before March 15.

“Despite a prolonged period of negotiations, it has not been possible to reach agreement between BA and Unite,” Brendan Barber, general secretary of the Trades Union Congress, which had brokered the talks, said in a statement on March 10, the same source reports.

According to Sky News, Barber said: "Both parties will be reflecting on the position and the TUC will be keeping in touch but at this stage no further negotiations are planned." Unite said: "Management's offer went nowhere near addressing our members' concerns over crew numbers and service levels. "Unite representatives will be meeting to discuss the consequences of this breakdown. Should BA wish to make an improved offer, they have time to do so."

Officials at the Unite union said no further talks were planned, according to AP. A BA spokesman said the company remains available for negotiations about the long-running dispute over pay, job security and working conditions.

Discussions broke down after British Airways rejected union proposals for a 2.6 percent pay cut, lower staffing levels and a reduction in allowances, Bloomberg reports. The London-based carrier said the package fell “significantly short” of the 63 million-pound ($94 million) saving claimed by Unite and that its own blueprint would achieve the sum without any wage reduction for serving employees.

The union's 12,500 cabin crew members twice voted for industrial action, but a walkout over Christmas was halted after a successful legal challenge from BA, according to Sky News. The union has ruled out striking over Easter. However, a walkout could come as early as March 18.

The union had taken its demand to overturn cost-cutting changes introduced by the airline to the courts, according to AP. It argued that the cuts — including a pay freeze this year, a switch to part-time work for some staff and a reduction in cabin crew numbers on long-haul flights — breached BA's contracts with staff because the airline did not properly consult with them before imposing the changes in November.

But the High Court sided with BA, which has long argued the changes were necessary to counter falling demand for air travel after the global financial crisis, as the same source reports.

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