The week of September 24-30, 2022 would constitute a week of labor unrest in American aviation. From informational picketing to a strike by food workers at San Francisco International Airport (SFO) and the Delta Air Lines pilots‘ union opening a vote to authorize the strike, labor relations have been shaken with a glimmer of hope of one of two airlines based in Seattle. .
San Francisco Airport workers concluded 3 days of strike action
With nine months of negotiations without results, SFO food workers decided to strike and close most of the restaurants at San Francisco International on Monday, September 26. After the regular meeting of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors on Tuesday, September 27 At the urging of Supervisor Rafael Mandleman and after public comments from strikers, the San Francisco Board of Supervisors agreed to review each lease for compliance with the labor peace provision on Tuesday. 27
UNITE HERE Local 2 and food vendors reached a new deal that gave San Francisco International Airport workers a pay raise and better health insurance benefits. Read also : United States hosts US-EU Space Dialogue – US Department of State. Details of the deal have not been disclosed.
Southwest Airlines flight attendants’ conduct an all-base informational picket
The Southwest Airlines Flight Attendants Union, which represents more than 18,000 flight attendants, participated in a picket line at all Southwest Airlines bases. This was in relation to a contract four years after the modification date, and TWU Local 556 recently requested a mediator for future negotiations.
According to the Houston Chronicle on September 27, flight attendants said the same scheduling issues that are causing pilot fatigue are also affecting them. See the article : Alaska Airlines surprises employees with 90,000 miles to travel around the world. For Denny Sebesta, a Southwest cabin crew member for 34 years and a member of the bargaining committee,
“Our flight attendants are very, very burnt out and disappointed. They are rapidly losing confidence in the company.”
Reserve cabin crew are also on call for 24-hour periods, which is not healthy. Having flight attendants also doesn’t worry about where to get hot food and rest while on duty.
TWU Local 556 wants an updated contract that:
In short, Southwest Airlines flight attendants want paid boarding, rest time, better technology support, a reservation system that works, and health insurance benefits. Ultimately, as Lyn Montgomery, president of TWU Local 556, told the Dallas Morning News;
“Work has really degraded over the years and we need to see changes in grueling shifts, like 24-hour calls. We need to be able to get home… And if we don’t get home, we’re supposed to be compensated for the overtime we get.” we are doing”.
Delta Air Lines pilots asked to authorize a strike
After negotiations between Delta Air Lines management and the union chapter of the Airline Pilots Association (ALPA) stalled again, pilots’ union leaders are seeking a vote to authorize the strike that began on September 30. Read also : The lack of a pilot interferes with summer travel, hurting efforts to revitalize the industry.. . In the words of Captain Jason Ambrosi, President of the Delta ALPA Master Executive Council,
“This is a crucial step in our efforts to secure an industry-leading comprehensive contract. We do not take a decision like this lightly. However, a new agreement is long overdue. We intend to send a strong message to management that Delta’s 14,600 pilots are willing to go the distance to get the contract we’ve earned.”
The frustration is genuine and real. Especially after Ryan Argenta, host of “Engage: The Podcast for Delta Pilots,” explained that Delta Air Lines management basically wrote a memo that said, “Yes, a contract this year, but concessions are needed and maybe the Next time”. , 2/3 of the requests are from management. In response, Ambrosi said on the podcast:
If the company knows that the pilots are willing to go the distance, they are much more likely to reach an agreement in a shorter period of time.
Although progress has been made in some parts, the previously documented fatigue issues are growing, according to the aforementioned ALPA statement, “record amounts of overtime to help Delta operate its overly ambitious schedule.” The pilots’ union is calling for a yes vote in the belief that the vote will show unity at a key moment.
Alaska Airlines pilots have a tentative agreement
On September 24, the Alaska Airlines Pilots Union announced a Tentative Agreement (TA) with management that is now being submitted for ratification. The TA claim addresses many outstanding issues that pilots have had with the airline. However, both the union leadership and the airline management are in a media blackout until Monday, October 17, at 11 a.m. Pacific Time during the ratification vote.
However, the pilots’ union has produced many podcast episodes on “The Alaska Pilots Podcast” and other electronic resources to educate members about the contract. Union president Will McQuillen said in an episode that the TA addresses the priorities that its members constantly relayed to it, such as “job security, scheduling and scheduling flexibility, your quality of life and pay, booking, all in that order.” .
Range, a topic that concerns at least several regular Simple Flying commentators, was also addressed in its own podcast episode. In the words of the chairman of the union’s bargaining committee, Chris Gruner,
“One of the things we said early on was that we were going to have a range arrangement that suits our company’s business model … we have a specific relationship for our narrow-body aircraft, which ensures that if the company grows, the small jets, correct, there has to be a proportional growth in the main line of airplanes and, therefore, in their work”.
Such is the case with this TA. Concerned readers are encouraged to visit AlaskaPilots.org to see the fine print.
What do you think of this week’s US aviation job challenges? Politely let us know in the comments.
PS The other airline based in Seattle is Kenmore Air.
Sources: Dallas Morning News, Houston Chronicle
