Hong Kong  - Airport workers in Hong Kong were Friday reportedly considering strike action that could paralyse one of the world's busiest transport hubs.

Unions representing some 3,000 workers at Chek Lap Kok airport protested over a usual year-end bonus worth two months' salaries being halved.

Talks were due to take place Friday or Saturday and a union leader warned that some workers wanted to stage a strike if the Airport Authority refused to reinstate their bonuses.

"There are some workers saying we should strike if the company refuses to listen to us," Ip Wai-ming, deputy general secretary of the airport workers' main union, told Friday's South China Morning Post.

"The last thing we want is to see airport services paralysed during the peak holiday period, but it all depends on the company's response."

The strike threat at Hong Kong airport comes just weeks after Bangkok's international airport was shut down by political activists, effectively cutting off Thailand from the world.

A spokesman for Hong Kong's Labour Department said it was mediating between the Airport Authority and the unions. "We hope both sides can handle the issue rationally," he told the newspaper.

Hong Kong International Airport is the fifth busiest airport in the world in terms of passenger numbers. In 2007, it handled 47.8 million passengers and 3.74 million tons of cargo. (dpa)