Robert Isom, the CEO of American Airlines, attempted to escalate negotiations with flight attendants by proposing an instant 17% rise.
“We’ve offered increased pay for all flight attendants and are not asking your union for anything in return,” Isom said in a video released Wednesday. “This is unusual, but these are unusual times.” He said the raise would appear in June paychecks.
The 27,000 flight attendants employed by Americans who are members of the Association of Professional Flight Attendants received the video. It happened as the union established a striking centre in Dallas and as the parties geared ready for perhaps last-ditch talks the following week. It did not get a favourable reaction.
“Our CEO has decided to negotiate with our members directly,” APFA President Julie Hedrick said Wednesday in an interview. “He is trying to circumvent the union.”
According to Hedrick, the 17% raise is equivalent to the current Delta pay rates. In a membership vote, she declared, “We have told them over and over again, it will not pass.” On Wednesday night, the offer was unanimously rejected by the union’s board.
Instead, she stated that APFA is seeking an industry-best deal that would outbid Delta’s prices. In addition, Delta offers boarding pay, something the APFA has previously negotiated for. Currently, the top industry contract belongs to the Transport Workers Union-represented flight attendants on Southwest Airlines. Although boarding money is not included in the Southwest contract, the company pays 24% of American earnings.
According to Hedrick, members were uninterested in America’s prior 17% offer. She claimed that she has received emails, texts, and chat groups from union members expressing their lack of interest. “Too little, too late,” wrote one passenger on social media. “Go to the damn table and stop negotiating with the members.”
At American’s request, negotiations with the National Mediation Board will take place in Washington the following week. Hedrick stated, “They ought to concentrate on that rather than attempting to get around the union.”
In his video, Isom said, “The company and APFA negotiating teams have been meeting regularly for months to reach a new agreement. We have made progress in several key areas, but there’s still a good deal of work to be done.
“We will be back at the table with APFA leadership next week and a deal is within reach, but I don’t know how long it will take to get to the finish line and I don’t want another day to go by without increasing your pay.
“So to get more money to you now, we presented APFA with a proposal that offers immediate wage increases of 17% and a new formula that would increase your 2024 profit sharing,” Isom said.
The APFA Strike Center communicates with members, produces written materials such as a strike guide, and maintains a dedicated strike hotline.
Discussions are taking place with a National Mediation Board mediator. To now, the NMB has refrained from disclosing the parties, allowing the union to declare a strike following thirty more days of negotiations. An APFA request for release was denied by the NMB in November, but Hedrick thinks a retort to the same request would be granted.
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