Tag Archives for union.
American Airlines is firing flight attendants at a record pace, according to internal union minutes, as it steps up enforcement against crew who aren’t where they’re supposed to be while on reserve. The airline is pulling travel records, social media, and even company-issued device data in its investigations.
American Airlines says it wants to win more premium travelers, but its flight attendants union says the airline is replacing well-liked crew hotels across the system in ways that mean less rest and worse onboard service. This is not just a fight over layovers — it is a test of whether American can really deliver a better product while still cutting the conditions crews depend on to do the job.
Southwest is experimenting with bringing cleaners on board between flights — but only to clean the premium extra-legroom section, leaving the rest of the cabin to the usual quick flight-attendant “tidy.” A flight attendants union leader says the trial creates a two-tier experience, likening it to Titanic class service, and warns passengers will notice fast when the front looks freshly cleaned and the back doesn’t.
The Southwest Airlines boarding experience has been the worst of all possible worlds since moving to assigned seating on January 27. Now flight attendants are being asked to shoulder the burden, and their union is putting the airline on blast.
United flight attendants, who haven’t seen a pay raise in five years, are being promised a potential breakthrough deal this March—but the airline says they’ll need to accept tradeoffs on scheduling, and unpaid leave to get it done.
Southwest flight attendants have voted down higher union dues three times, but the proposal is back for a fourth try. This time, the union is limiting ballots to in-person meetings, turning a $5-a-month ask into a fight over turnout, process, peer pressure and whether “no” actually means no.
In a blunt internal message to employees, United Airlines says it has offered flight attendants the highest pay rates in the industry, but claims union leaders are refusing to agree to the needed tradeoffs. After five years without raises, here’s what’s holding up a deal.
American Airlines pilots declared “no confidence” in the airline’s management and requested a meeting with the board over financial and operational struggles—but the board declined, sending them right back to the executives they criticized.
American Airlines pilots avoided directly confronting CEO Robert Isom, but internal turmoil over cancellations, lost profits, and operational chaos continues to intensify—leaving the airline facing trouble ahead.
After 71% of United Airlines flight attendants rejected their latest contract offer, the airline is back with a controversial demand—PBS scheduling could fundamentally change what trips flight attendants work.
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 »
