Tag Archives for flight attendants.
United Airlines will require cabins to be prepared for landing earlier in order to protect cabin crew from injuries. Starting December 1, flight attendants will have to be belted at their jumpseats, prepared for landing, at around 10,000 feet when the double chime sounds.
British Airways crew members claimed they were mugged in Brazil, perhaps leading to the cancellation of flight 248 from Rio to London. However, Brazilian authorities and surveillance footage revealed that the crew engaged in heavy drinking and drug use, with the mugging story being a cover-up for their inability to work. The incident raises questions about the crew’s behavior and their responsibility towards passenger safety.
Virgin Australia flight attendant Ashlee Jane recorded a TikTok explaining why she quit her job. The flight attendant lifestyle seems rewarding at first, but is actually grueling.
You can’t really switch airlines, since you will start out at the bottom (seniority rules). But it’s easy to see why people stick with it once flexibility start to improve a little and pay goes up a bit with seniority – but also easy to see why the job drains you – and why so many flight attendants burn out on the job without leaving it like Ashlee Jane does.
American Airlines has sent a reminder to flight attendants not to go above and beyond for passengers in economy. The airline told cabin crew that they shouldn’t give economy passengers blankets, pillows, or treats from business class. American framed this as consistency, which is to say making sure that there are no occasional surprise and delight moments in the coach cabin.
United Airlines faces another lawsuit from flight attendants claiming discriminatory practices in choosing crew for sports team charter flights, alleging a preference for “white, young, thin women who are predominantly blond and blue-eyed.” Despite having selected diverse crews in the past, the recent removal of older and minority attendants from such flights, combined with previous controversies, raises questions about United’s selection criteria and potential biases.
American Airlines flight attendants are losing their patience in contract negotiations with the airline. They’ve already voted near-unanimously to authorize a strike. There’s a specific procedure that airline unions have to go through in order to strike, and they’re about to start the clock – on a timeline that could have them walking out over peak Christmas travel.
After the American Airlines earnings call, tensions rose during an all-employee meeting with questions centered on union contracts for flight attendants and reservations agents. The flight attendants union, demanding a 50% wage increase and hinting at potential strikes, criticized the company’s treatment, while CEO Robert Isom responded by emphasizing their intent to offer industry-leading compensation and benefits.
American Airlines flight attendants, led by union President Julie Hedrick, delivered a letter of ‘no confidence’ in management to Senior Vice President Brady Byrnes on Thursday. The airline’s reaction to union members at ‘Skyview’ corporate headquarters was to put out a memo to security to “BOLO” – Be On The Lookout – for anyone wearing a union t-shirt.
The American Airlines flight attendants union has reduced pay demands ever so slightly, but extended out the period of time they’re talking about to get up to a 50% bump in wages in order to sell it to their members.
They’re still outside the zone of possible agreement, though. And they’re saying they are “holding firm on” wages after taking a strike authorization vote in which over 99% of voting crew supported going on strike. They want a 50% increase in wages – firm – and they’re threatening strike to get it.
The United Airlines flight attendants union, AFA-CWA, has seen its negotiations with the airline drag on. They’ve been without a new contract since the last one become amendable in August 2021. And they have been talking up strikes.
Keyed to the airline’s announcement of an order for 110 new planes, flight attendants union President Ken Diaz put out a statement suggesting the airline is prioritizing planes over people.
Gary Leff is one of the foremost experts in the field of miles, points, and frequent business travel -- a topic he has covered since 2002.
Co-founder of frequent flyer community InsideFlyer.com, emcee of the Freddie Awards, and named one of the "World's Top Travel Experts" by Conde' Nast Traveler (2010-Present) Gary has been a guest on most major news media, profiled in several top print publications, and published broadly on the topic of consumer loyalty. More About Gary »
