SFO Workers Vote to Authorize Strike
SAN FRANCISCO – Airline service workers at San Francisco International Airport voted overwhelmingly yesterday to authorize a strike at one of the busiest airports in the country. Workers who came out to vote on Thursday said that they were fighting against declining standards of service and security at the airports. Poverty-level wages and lack of access to affordable family health care are causing record turnover rates among workers and driving a race to the bottom in service and safety standards.
Workers called on airline giants such as American, Cathay Pacific and United to take a leadership role in calling for higher standards for service and security.
Workers employed by contractors Prime Flight and G2 Secure Staff voted yesterday to authorize a strike. Employees of a third contractor, Air Serv, are also in negotiations at the airport.
CRISIS IN AIRLINE SERVICE INDUSTRY
Low wages and lack of healthcare are driving a turnover rate among airport service workers that is as high as 50% per year in some jobs. This negatively impacts service and security at California airports. High turnover in the industry prevents security officers and other passenger service workers from getting the experience and training they need to adequately protect and provide quality services to airline passengers.
At SFO, airline service workers such as security officers, janitors, passenger service workers, cabin cleaners, ramp and cargo crew, on average, earn less than $12.00 an hour, putting them well below the $54,000 per year that the Economic Policy Institute says is necessary for a family of four to survive in California. In addition, none of the service workers have access to affordable family health care.
“We are the face of the airlines. We are the people that passengers see every day,” said Patrick Jack, who provides skycap services for American Airlines through his employer G2 Secure Staff and has worked at the airport for 19 years. “We are taking a stand for better service, better airport security, and for quality jobs.”
LAX Passenger Service Workers Vote to Authorize Strike
Airline service workers at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) voted overwhelmingly yesterday to authorize a strike at the nation’s fifth busiest airport. Workers said that they were fed up with declining standards of service and security at the airports. According to the workers, inadequate training, lack of proper equipment, poverty-level wages and lack of access to family health care are causing record turnover rates among workers and driving a race to the bottom in service and safety standards. [Read more]
Real-Life Family Reunion Brought to You by United Airlines
You have probably seen the latest United Airlines commercial at the 2008 Beijing Olympics: a woman says goodbye to her husband for a business trip, leaves her heart behind as a token of her love, only to be reunited with her husband, all thanks to United Airlines.
That’s nice.
Anita Cabral’s real-life, horrific story of a family reunion with United Airlines, on the other hand, is heart-breaking. [Read more]
LAX Workers to Hold Strike Vote
On Wednesday, 2,500 service workers at LAX will vote to determine whether to go on strike.
The workers, who have been negotiating their contract since May, are employed by airline subcontractors to provide passenger services to several major airlines, such as United, American, and Southwest. A Los Angeles Times story reports: [Read more]
Seats Slid Aboard United Airlines Flight, Crushing Passengers Behind
In a bizarre incident on August 3, 2008, a row of seats slid back on a United Airlines flight, crushing passengers sitting in the row behind.
According to the news report: [Read more]
Tripso Post: After years of airline subsidies, how about a payback for taxpayers?
Steve Surjaputra at Tripso wrote about the airline subsidies report released by the East Bay Alliance for a Sustainable Economy (EBASE), Los Angeles Alliance for a New Economy, and Working Partnerships USA. Here are some of what he highlighted from the report: [Read more]
Perspectives on United’s Lawsuit against Pilots
On July 30, United Airlines filed a lawsuit seeking a preliminary injunction against the Air Line Pilots Association (ALPA) and a group of UA pilots for allegedly abusing sick-time.
Holly Hegeman at PlaneBuzz.com offers some perspectives on the allegations. [Read more]
UA Flight Stops to Refuel… to Save Money?
U.S. airlines are finding more and more ways to save money in this volatile environment. The latest: not carrying enough fuel on a flight.
According to a post by Paul Soglin:
In these pricey times, while the airlines are unforginvg to passengers who need to rebook a flight, have two suitcases to check, or forget to keep thier mileage account current, the carriers haul as little fuel as possible to reduce weight and save money.
Someone miscalculated and we did not have enough fuel. No rebates, no coupons, no extra miles were offered. All we got was the official apology from the pilot who pointed out that “It is better to be on the ground and wishing you were in the air than being in the air and wishing you were on the ground.”
United Airlines’ Problems Summed Up
Portfolio.com’s business travel columnist, Joe Brancatelli, wrote an excellent article that sums up all of United Airlines’ troubles, perhaps best conveyed in its title: Worst. Airline. Ever.
He offers one of the best summaries of United’s woes in 2008:
Just 29 months removed from the longest, costliest, and least-effective bankruptcy in aviation history, the nation’s second-largest airline is once again facing a financial abyss. United’s first-quarter net loss of $537 million was more than its two main competitors combined. Last month it paid a huge premium to avoid a default on its loan covenants. Its 4 percent decline in passenger traffic in May was twice as steep as that of any of its competitors. Last week’s announcement that it would ground 100 aircraft, reduce capacity by 10 percent, and shed thousands more workers was startling given the huge contraction it already experienced while in bankruptcy. A 19-month search for a merger partner resulted in rejections from Continental Airlines and US Airways, a carrier that was desperate to sell itself to United just eight years ago. The airline’s shares slid into single digits last week from a 52-week high north of $50.
More importantly, he pinpoints United’s failing performances to its 2002 bankruptcy: [Read more]
What Fees Can You Expect to Pay On Your Next Flight?
In an era of nickel-and-diming by the airlines, passengers are seeing all kinds of fees being placed on their flights – 1st baggage, 2nd baggage, leg room, snacks, etc. Every airline has its own fee scales, and it can be confusing – not to mention costly – for passengers.
Fortunately, Rick Seaney, the CEO of Farecompare.com and airline industry expert, has put together a convenient chart of all fees that U.S. airlines charge the passengers. Click HERE to see the chart.
photo credit: Alan Nakkash
