Tag Archives for union.
Flight attendants have significantly reduced their bargaining demands in tense negotiations with the American Airlines. The parties have been working this week in Washington, D.C. with federal mediators, and will continue to do so all next week, in front of a leaked deadline to wrap up a deal under threat that the government will release cabin crew to strike.
Flight Attendants voted to authorize a strike with nearly 99.5% casting a ballot in favor back in August. The union asked the National Mediation Board to declare an impasse in the fall, hoping to be allowed to strike over the peak Christmas holiday. This was denied. Subsequent requests haven’t received a formal answer.
American Airlines flight attendants voted overwhelmingly to authorize a strike. They’ve asked the government’s National Mediation Board for permission to do so. Their contract became amendable in 2019 and they haven’t had a raise in five years.
Outwardly, things have looked pretty bleak. But the two sides are closer to an agreement than ever.
Some flight attendants are calling LOSA-C, the Line Operations Safety Audit-Cabin program the “snitch” program. It was announced this was coming 15 months ago and was supposed to start this past fall, but the airline is only just now recruiting flight attendant observers for it.
American Airlines flight attendants haven’t had a raise since 2019. At the end of that year their contract became amendable, and the value of their wages has been substantially eroded since then by more than 20% inflation. A new contract was delayed first by the pandemic The process of negotiating all the myriad details is a long one. The current agreement (that flight attendants didn’t even approve) runs over 325 pages. And that doesn’t count a separate 15 page attendance policy and 18 page uniform policy among others. Plus, union politics (effectively needing to wait for incumbent officers to be re-elected) meant further delay. Boston-based first and second year American Airlines flight attendants are eligible for food stamps. American Airlines even gives newly-hired flight attendants a letter attesting to their poverty. The letter states that…
A strong showing may signal ‘resolve’ to the company – that flight attendants are united in getting a good deal and won’t settle. But they probably do little else. Picketing in front of the White House might get more media, and make a point to the President not to intervene the way President Clinton did, halting an American Airlines flight attendants strike in 1993. I’m quite optimistic that a strike can be avoided altogether.
Sara Nelson, president of the largest flight attendants union (which represents cabin crew at United Airlines, among others, and is trying to organize at Delta) has came out for pro-Hamas protestors on Friday.
Last week the American Airlines flight attendants union reminded cabin crew at the airline that they aren’t allowed to strike or take other actions that hurt the company, unless first permitted by the government to do so.
They even have to make the optional credit card announcements. At a minimum, they’re warned, that if they write on social media that they aren’t going to pitch the credit card they may be fired.
After Thursday’s tense showdown between American Airlines CEO Robert Isom and the head of the airline’s flight attendant’s union, it may seem like the parties are farther apart than ever. They’re not.
Following Thursday’s American Airlines earnings call, senior management held a company all-hands “State Of The Airline” address. Over 4,000 employees tuned in live to the presentation and question and answer session, and a recording was placed online.
After talking through the news around his own compensation, CEO Robert Isom laid out where things stand with the company’s offer to flight attendants. This proved to be setting up the most dramatic moment of the event.
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 »
