American Airlines flight attendants haven’t had a raise since 2019. Airline union negotiations don’t work like in other industries. A contract never ‘ends’ instead it just becomes amendable at a certain time. And negotiations can drag on for years, during which time the status quo – including pay rates – prevail.
Unions have to ask the government’s permission to strike (“self-help”). Airline strikes are very high profile and don’t look great for the party in power, which has generally appointed a majority on the National Mediation Board. The NMB is reluctant to declare a deadlock in an election year, and these days when is it not one of those? And they’re reluctant to do it around holidays when consumers are most inconvenienced.
Normally that’s not such a big deal, and eventually airlines and unions come to terms. Southwest Airlines flight attendants successfully ratified a record-breaking contract on Wednesday. Delta gave all of its non-union employees a 5% raise, ensuring that the top pay they were earning would stay at the top.
However with 20% inflation since the last raise for flight attendants at American, the length of time it’s taken to get a contract done is a problem. The value of their wages has eroded to the point that first and second year Boston-based cabin crew are eligible for food stamps.
- American offered to match Delta pay, but the union rejected this.
- American offered a short-term deal, and to renegotiate once another airline started paying more, and the union rejected this.
- The longer flight attendants go without a contract, the longer they’re living with lower wages.
- Recently-completed union officer elections make it easier for those officers to come to a compromise, but there’s also a reset of expectations with how well Southwest has done.
Credit: American Airlines
And so flight attendants get increasingly frustrated. Here’s what American’s Philadelphia base is promoting, an interesting amalgamation of complaints about society as well as a reflection on their own leadership: Being a “union thug” “overthrow capitalism” “solidarity with Palestine”
Note also wearing both an APFA pin – the American Airlines flight attendants union – and also an AFA pin. There’s long been a movement to have the independent cabin crew union folded into the AFA (Association of Flight Attendants) which is part of the AFL-CIO, led by Sara Nelson. US Airways flight attendants had been AFA-CWA members, and the APFA is renting AFA’s lead negotiator for their own grindingly slow contract negotiations.
This despite flight attendants represented by AFA-CWA being deeply unhappy. AFA-CWA has a scoring system at United Airlines which reports on flight attendant unhappiness there. 91% of AFA-CWA union members feel unvalued by their company and 99% feel their issues are unresolved. Their union representation hasn’t given them positive work life.
Meanwhile, no AFA-CWA represented flight attendant has ever gotten boarding pay, which American Airlines has offered in current negotiations.
There’s a lot of frustration. The union is probably better off focusing their messaging on the plight of their least-well off members (even though the distribution of pay, where more senior cabin crew do so much better, is itself the result of union bargaining) rather than on complaints about “capitalism” and “Palestine.”
Once there’s finally a deal, flight attendants should get a big raise – but doing a deal quickly, following up on Southwest’s success, makes a lot of sense because there’s also risk in the economy if interest rates stay higher longer and that’ll mitigate against what they can achieve. Meanwhile, just a nickel’s worth of free advice for cabin crew: calling to globalize the intifada is inadvisable for someone with Known Crewmember status.
A big raise is an opportunity for the company, but reports of negotiations suggest they aren’t taking it. American is introducing a new premium long haul product this year – not just business class suites with doors, but an elevated front row with even better amenities that may pair with premium on the ground services as well. Tying elevated pay to accountability for elevated service levels would help them earn the sort of revenue premium that would actually pay for those higher wages.
And let the flight attendant bashing commence……
@Gary: Your words ‘The union is probably better off focusing their messaging on the plight of their least-well off members (even though the distribution of pay, where more senior cabin crew do so much better, is itself the result of union bargaining) rather than on complaints about “capitalism” and “Palestine.” ‘ have to be some of the most stupid you’ve ever written.
One photo of a group of pins on a uniform or bag of a flight attendant (almost all of which are against company policy) is only that. ONE photo. That is hardly a valid representation of what the APFA is supporting. Our negotiations are difficult enough – as you very well know – without trying to tie them to other inflammatory global concerns. Shame on you for trying to tie your obvious dislike of AA’s flight attendants to a divisive topic like that. You’ve stooped to a new low.
@An Actual AA Flight Attendant – one photo *being promoted by the union*
@Gary: WRONG. That’s one photo posted by a flight attendant on a non-union-affiliated page. phlfaunity is NOT APFA endorsed. Period.
Airlines (and other companies with public-facing employees) need to crack down on “messaging” pins of all kinds. “Overthrow Capitalism” worn by an employee who is making a living in a capitalist society, is pretty ignorant. The FAs’ political beliefs about a particular conflict are irrelevant to them performing their jobs, so there is zero reason to wear such pins. A name tag is all that is needed.
What do they think wearing the union negotiation-related pins are going to do? Are they imagining passengers are going to write in to the airline “You know I saw an FA’s pin that read “I’d like respect reflected in my check”. I hereby demand you agree to the union’s wishes or I won’t fly your airline anymore!” They’re behaving like children.
Worst blog ever..you should open a gossip website.. your content has become nothing but click bait.. pathetic content and even worse of a person you are..
Why don’t you go to Israel and help them kill more innocent kids
Great content. Really appreciate it. Keep up exposing the AA FA union. The reality is that the union has screwed the workers. The union doesn’t care about its members. It cares about itself.
The problem with the pro-socialism crowd, pitchforks and all, is that until said revolution occurs socialism breeds cronyism. There are winners and losers. Capitalism is best when it is really unfettered and the governments job is to internalize negative externalities and enforce contracts.
Sorry workers, you lose again and your union makes it worse.
I know the “Union Thug” pin is supposed to intimidate all of us with the threat of physical violence, but it really needs to be worn by a dockworker or trucker, not some milquetoast FA. In support of DEI, may I also suggest that, in the name of Equity, that all FA’s be paid exactly the same rate in future agreements, no matter seniority or any other factors.
Nothing shows how utterly ignorant and worthless a person is then supporting socialism. Supporters of socialism are failures in life who are bitter and jealous at seeing others who have succeeded. You live socialism so much please go spend 1 year in Vietnam or Venezuela. Then tell me how much you love.
Union scum being Union scum. No surprise.
Of course Gary stays quiet when his fellow Maga acolytes tried to overturn the results of an election. Yee and haw.
Gary will then misrepresent one picture to serve some strange ends
@phlapfaunity is run by an APFA represented flight attendant, just like every other base specific APFA unity page as far as I’m aware this does in fact link the two. Additionally I have seen the official APFA account feature story and post content with these “non affiliated” pages tagged, sometimes even reposting content from these pages on the official page. So it’s hard to say that the union doesn’t endorse the messages posted by these “non affiliated” accounts.
To some others on this comment section (and site generally); flight crew aren’t a hive mind. Believe it or not, a lot of us are pretty normal people who come to work and do our jobs to the highest standards. Please don’t let ideologues form your opinion of us.
To Gary’s point about accountability for service standards, I couldn’t agree more. AA has long struggled with this. We have a section of flight attendants that do their best and are actually quite good at what they do. The workgroup as a whole has a huge issue with normalizing subpar work. I have told by colleagues on numerous occasions something to the effect of “don’t do anything extra for these people” (referring to our passengers). While I have a bit of seniority and these comments are easily ignored, I could see a new hire taking this message to heart.
To my fellow AA flight attendants; take some personal pride in what you do. We can’t argue for higher wages while simultaneously doing less and less for our passengers. Public support can play a role in contract negotiations, but we really need to improve our public perception first.
@747always “Of course Gary stays quiet when his fellow Maga acolytes tried to overturn the results of an election. ”
I was outspoken here around January 6, 2021 and was highly critical of Trump as a candidate and as President.
@Gary Leff
+1
Gary tries as hard as he can to be balanced. Calling out the bad no matter who does it and praising the good as well.
Palestine Thugs are emotionally melting down here.
If I may say the Capitalism I grew up with is kinda on life support. Corporations kept gobbling up their competition in all areas consolidating their wealth then sending the manufacturing to China. What competition? Look at the airlines. Congress used to have a committee that studied mergers and acquistions taking up to two years to decide the impact for all.
Without healthy competition there is no hope for Capitalism. And as to political pins and tags on FA’s luggage–No.
The buttons are not on a uniform or at work. The post clearly is talking about the Labor Notes conference, hence the multiple union pins (why did you only mention AFA and not the others?) and expressions of solidarity. Once again, no one asked for Gary’s opinion.
@Someone you’re missing the point
@Gary I’m actually not missing the point. Unions have always been involved in the establishment of Israel and are now taking responsibility for its actions. There also is nothing here “demanding free Palestine,” “calling for a global intifada,” or even mentioning “socialism,” for that matter, so the bigger problem is YOUR choice of inflammatory language. Second, if you weren’t blocked from viewing the phlfaunity Instagram page for being a troll, you would’ve seen how the buttons on someone’s personal jacket were the least significant part of this particular post.
@Someone “here also is nothing here “demanding free Palestine,” “calling for a global intifada,” or even mentioning “socialism,” ”
The union is promoting a button here that reads “Overthrow Capitalism” – so I guess it may not promote socialism, it could be communism, or even Nazism, so point taken on that.
@Gary wauw, good one, Gary.
Lock Out the current AA FA’s. They and their Union are greedy and have put THEMSELVES in the wrong position. I can’t believe that after the new Union Officers are elected now they might start to negotiate. You know why that is? The Union Officers OVER PROMISE and UNDER DELIVER. Watch them sell out the younger members so that one past retirement can work 1/10th as much and make more. Ridiculous.
@747always since when has Gary been “Maga” OR an “election overthrower”? Do you actually read this blog? Ignorant comments.
I wouldn’t want this terrorist sympathizer in the cockpit during a pilot bathroom break.
Quite frankly, I don’t need to know whether a flight attendant is a rightist, a leftists or a nihlist if it’s not visible to me on the flight. I need to know and see that they’re well trained in both safety and service and proactively offer the best service they can in line with the airline’s standards. If they want to be fools or bigots on their own time, that’s their business IMHO.
Unions are cancers, and empower the worst people in society
@Jimmy….I’m actually very proud to live in a democracy that gives the freedom for people to have unions. Regardless if I agree with a union or not, having unions is a freedom that should be treasured and respected. It’s also sets our country apart from a dictatorship. Taking the right away for people to unionized or calling it a cancer could be considered un-American.
@someone @actual FA comforting to know that some of your union brothers share goals with the 9/11 highjackers, eh?