Alaska Airlines flight attendants reject big pay raise – now deal with American Airlines faces big risks
Alaska Airlines flight attendants have just rejected the collective bargaining agreement negotiated by their union that would have given them an immediate 18% pay raise and an additional 3% in subsequent years, a boarding pass, and backdated pay through 2022. The vote was not close – 68 votes against to 32.
The ratification vote for the 2024 Provisional Agreement (TA) ended today at 12 noon PT with a participation rate of 92.4% of eligible voters. Thank you for participating in the ratification vote. Results:
68% voted AGAINST the agreement
32% voted FOR the agreement pic.twitter.com/vCeBNZcexZ— AFA Alaska (@AFAAlaska) 14 August 2024
This was a strong contract for an airline that has historically not paid flight attendants as well as their counterparts. It brought them much closer together, especially in terms of onboard allowance, and was what Sara Nelson’s AFA-CWA felt was the best they could achieve.
Southwest Airlines flight attendants rejected their first tentative agreement and eventually agreed to a record deal that set a precedent not only for pay but also for back pay, which may have encouraged crew members here, who know they are based in expensive cities with hubs in Seattle and San Francisco.
Alaska flight crew must reject their contract immediately after the start of voting to a new flight attendant contract for American Airlines would likely reinforce the “no” votes there. On Monday, I explained the reasons why the president of American Airlines’ flight attendant base at LAX publicly opposed the contract.
Knowing that a five-year contract can be valid for up to ten years (since, under the Railway Workers’ Labour Code, terms do not expire but can only be modified), the stakes are high and there are major concerns, particularly with regard to labour regulations.
- They have not achieved the reduction in reserve levels they had sought.
- There was no buyout clause, so Delta and United flight attendants were able to quickly earn more.
- And many flight attendants prefer higher pay to a boarding fee because most now realize that they are not really “unpaid” for boarding and that the boarding fee benefits the younger flight attendants (who fly more short-haul flights and spend more time boarding) at the expense of the more experienced flight attendants (who spend comparatively more time on the plane).
The deal with American isn’t about hourly wages, profit sharing, or back pay. They got those! With American, it’s about work rules, whether they can keep up with the wages of their competitors, and whether the union set the right priorities in the negotiations.
How much better Alaska flight attendants can get is unclear, but they will undoubtedly have to wait. Members have turned down immediate raises and large back paychecks in the hope that more will come later and that economic conditions won’t change, making it harder for the airline to meet its goals. Alaska is in good financial shape right now.
American is underperforming, making waiting for a better deal riskier. Some flight attendants are vowing to fight this union contract and are willing to take that bet.
