Senator Bernie Sanders (I – VT) and his Democratic colleagues have argued that it is time the National Mediation Board releases flight attendants at American Airlines to strike.
Bernie Sanders Says American Airlines Flight Attendants Should Be Allowed To Strike…But To What End?
Sanders chairs the Senate Committee On Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions and in that role has been a prominent ally of organized labor. With American Airlines and the Asccotion of Profesional Flight Attendants (APFA) locked in a multi-year battle over a new contract for AA flight attendants, Sanders and 31 colleagues believe that it is time to authorize a strike:
“We are concerned about the increasing number of contract negotiations before the NMB that are being unnecessarily drawn out at the expense of workers. We understand that there are ongoing negotiations that have dragged on for as long as five years and we have heard from workers who are rightfully frustrated that they are being subjected to unfair delays in bargaining. Without new contracts, these workers are left further and further behind rising costs of living while airline carriers make record-breaking profits.
“In particular, over 100,000 flight attendants have recently been or currently are stuck in contract negotiations with many working under contracts that expired several years ago. Earlier this year, tens of thousands of flight attendants around the world rallied to demand fair contracts from six airlines. These workers were on the frontlines of the COVID-19 pandemic and were instrumental in saving the airline industry from collapse, but now, in some cases, find themselves working for pre-pandemic wage levels. They deserve better.
“Unfortunately, it seems airline carriers do not feel pressured to reach agreements quickly, likely because the flight attendants’ ability to strike has rarely been allowed to be exercised…We are concerned that this fact has contributed to the present pattern of unending negotiations and that many carriers are taking advantage of the situation.”
(letter)
Airlines in the U.S. are making record profits while flight attendants & aviation workers struggle to make ends meet.@afa_cwa & @APFAunity have been stuck in contract negotiations for far too long.
It's time for the airlines to come to the table & deliver on a fair contract. pic.twitter.com/satfk0BE7C
— Bernie Sanders (@SenSanders) June 12, 2024
First, carriers are not making record-breaking profits…American Airlines is losing money.
Second, there is good reason to believe that American Airlines simply cannot afford lucrative new contracts for flight attendants (even if the C-Suite cut their salaries to zero…). Kyle did a great job of laying out the dilemma on Sunday.
So now what? Poverty wages for flight new-hire flight attendants in large cities? More of the status quo? Bankruptcy? It’s not even clear where American Airlines will find the money to pay for the 17% no-strings-attached pay raise it offered last week. What more can flight attendants reasonably expect when the demand for their jobs so far exceeds the supply of jobs available? (which places inherent downward pressure on wages due to minimal training and education requirements for new hires…)
A strike won’t benefit anyone…and I am not expecting one. But even if AA and the union reach a deal, in theory, tomorrow and the APFA declares victory, the cost structures at American Airlines are already very high, placing AA in a very precarious position next time there is an economic downturn (if you can’t make money in the good times…).
There’s a fundamental problem at AA and giving flight attendants a nice raise will improve morale, but it won’t improve the underlying issues…Sanders and his ilk don’t really seem to care about that…and not having a job can truly hurt workers far more stagnant wages…just ask the laid off fast food workers of California…or not?
I don’t know what the future holds for American Airlines, but when spending exceeds revenue for a long period…well, you know what happens.
image: Bernie Sanders in first class on American Airlines / X
Now may be the best time (strategically) for the FA’s to strike:
– AA alienated business PAX, now trying to regain that premium revenue with premium cabin service
– A strike leaves airframes and employees siting idle, sucking up capital with no return
– PAX will flow to the other legacy & LLC carriers draining the coffers of AA
– The Dem & Rep National Conventions are just around the corner, lost PAX, lost opportunity, bad image
– Summer peak travel is upon us, and this year looks to be the best in numbers & potential revenue
– A corresponding depressed stock gives a hedge fund the chance to swoop in and demand changes like SWA & B6
– Stock holders and BOD members have trigger fingers of late. Ready to jettison those in the C-Suite at short notice
@Paper … If a strike now , management would dissolve in surrender .
Long past time to strike . Enough hand-wringing and talk-talk . Walk the walk , already .
What would be fair is to cut the FA pay except to those with low seniority. Equalize the pay.
The high seniority FA should pay their fair share.
classic communism. everyone should be poor 🙂
People like Bernie Sanders don’t care about the financial state of companies, they just think unions good no matter what.
It’s purely ideological.
Their (AAL) financials and balance sheet is terrible but it’s not bad enough that they’ll declare ch11 bankruptcy when the next recession rolls around. The company is weak, not as weak as you may believe, but still weak enough to flounder around.
AA cannot legally lock out and replace FAs permanently if/when a strike occurs anyway. Not sure how it would be allowed
Bernie is probably the only member of Congress who isn’t purchased by corporations and special interests, so I suspect he feels sincere in what he’s saying… Though I wonder what he’ll be saying when half of them lose their jobs during inevitable restructuring.
That’s pretty rich, Bernie has never done any real work in his life, but he’s an “expert” in labor issues and what it takes to run a business . He”s just another communist union support and we all have seen how well communist regimes deal with businesses.
Yes, let’s cut flight attendant pay to make the in poverty. When they spend 1/2-2/3 their life away from home dealing with BS.
I’m an IT PM at another company and I clear $150k easily, and being a flight attendant was much more demanding. I lean republican but this ish is ridiculous. “Work harder” doesn’t suffice for nearly 60% of the population to catch up, yet some are still going to blame the lowest paid unionized workgroup for AA’s faults. No wonder they don’t feel sorry. I wouldn’t either. If some entitled passenger started complaining about their bag, I’d be like pull your boot straps up and push another one over. But wait! Let me ridicule you, write online about you, cry worse than my teenage girl, then pretend I have bootstraps to pull up.
1. spelling counts.
2. yes, you’re amazing, middle class and important.
3. consider not posting after having a few drinks. Re-read your post in the morning and pay attention to it.
Well 31 million for the top dog at AA. STARVATION WAGES for the workers in the trenches..How bout cutting his salary to a mere 5 million.. They won’t do that..WHY?? LIVING IN a big city costs lots of loot but upper management doesn’t care..The airline has been mismanaged for years and upper management keeps getting their $$.. Something is wrong here . Wake up board
They can go live in Vermont with Bernie.
While they’re there, make a picket line in Vermont too.
Desertfox right on… Bernie loves unions… what a liberal cutie
I notice that Bernie is riding 1st class in this picture. And the look on his face? Busted!