Delta Air Lines flights attendants aren’t unionized. But flight attendants at Delta Connection carrier Endeavor Air, which Delta owns, are represented by the largest flight attendants union AFA-CWA. And the union is telling its members not to go out of their way to confront passengers who are breaking rules. They don’t get paid enough for it: “Act your wage.”
In a memo first reported by Paddle Your Kanoo, the union warned thousands of Delta’s regional flight attendants to avoid getting into arguments with passengers even over safety-related issues.
The union, which represents flight attendants at carriers such as Alaska and United Airlines, believes that Endeavor Air flight attendants should earn as much – and receive profit-sharing – just like crew at mainline Delta (they’re also trying to organize Delta cabin crew).
The union is looking at contract negotiations for regional flight attendants in 2027, and warns that as things escalate the airline might discipline flihgt attendants for unprofessional conduct in the event of a dispute with a passenger. The “primary focus on all of the rules and regulations that we ask passengers to follow is to inform, not enforce” according to AFA-CWA.
- Remind passengers of the rules they’re breaking
- In the air, just inform the captain and write them up.
- On the ground, get a gate agent involved.
We do not get paid to argue. Just stop. There’s absolutely no need to be extra. This is not within your job scope. Act your wage. You’re a Flight Attendant, not a Red Coat.
“Inform, not enforce” is actually right. United Airlines put flight attendants through de-escalation training after the famous April 2017 David Dao passenger dragging incident. That unexpectedly served them well during the pandemic when passenger misbehavior inflight spiked, and mask rules became a flashpoint.
While story after story came out where flight attendants were being injured in altercations with passengers, and flights were diverting, United’s flight attendants told passengers to wear masks and those who wouldn’t got written up (and banned from the airline) once on the ground.
Wait until @Tim Dunn hears ‘Delta flight attendants union’… ‘but, but… it’s not Delta, it’s Endeavor…’ (yeah, we know, but the paint says ‘Delta’ and to most folks it’s Delta.)
Anyway, on to the typical union-bashing here… Lest we forget all the societal benefits that organized labor has enabled… ‘something-something bootstraps’ again, I suspect. *sigh*
You don’t get paid enough to do your job – isn’t safety the highest job priority? They always announce that on the plane.
@Marc — So… it sounds like… those companies should pay their workers more!
I think that the union is right on this. The flight attendants do not go through training to physically enforce rules on a non compliant passenger. Have others called in when necessary (sometimes having passengers help). Mostly the enforcement for non compliance would be being banned from future flights including the current one if not in the air already. Flight attendants already have tape and zip ties (I think) to restrain passengers if needed.
Delta could offer annual incentives to the flight crews at Endeavor Air, like one million SkyMiles, good enough for a positive space round trip award in D1 from Dothan to Duluth…
As a frequent flyer who mainly does a lot of short haul up and down the East Coast on RJs, one of the many pleasant surprises of switching from DL to AA is never again having to deal with the uniformly atrocious NYC-based Endeavor FAs. Endeavor FAs from other stations are mostly fine, good even, but there’s no excuse for how unbelievably trashy the 9E FAs based in NY are.
During the pandemic, an AS flight attendant came close to pushing me over the edge by insisting that I pull my mask back up after every single bite of food, even mid-chew. He actually stood in the aisle watching to make sure I complied. It was a petty display of authority that could easily have escalated into something serious over nothing more than a granola bar, especially if the passenger had been someone with less self-control than I had. Without clear managerial oversight, that kind of overzealous behavior turns flight attendants into self-appointed law enforcement rather than trained safety professionals. And let’s be honest, they are really there first and foremost to serve the paying passengers, with safety as a secondary (though still important) function on what is statistically one of the safest modes of transportation in existence. Delta’s decision to focus on de-escalation, documentation, and proper procedural channels is the right call. It lowers the risk of unnecessary conflict that can lead to in-flight incidents, diversions, or legal exposure. This is smart management that protects employees, passengers, and the company alike. Bravo, Delta. Keep climbing.
It’s childish of the union to say that the only people who should be conscientious and professional are those making X dollars a year. Not a good look for a union trying to look competent.