Media Advisory: October 29, 2008
Contact: Corey Caldwell 202-434-0586
Midwest Flight Attendants To Hold Halloween Picket
Midwest Airlines Flight Attendants Picket on Halloween
Friday, October 31, 2008
11:30 am to 2:30 pm
Picketing: Outside of ticket counter
Leafleting: Main Level, Concourse D
General Mitchell International Airport
Milwaukee, WI
Washington, DC - On Friday, October 31, Midwest Airlines flight attendants, represented by the Association of Flight Attendants-CWA (AFA-CWA) will hold a Tricked Not Treat Halloween picket in Milwaukee. Upset by the recent outsourcing of jobs, Midwest flight attendants will inform the public that the carrier recently made plans to transfer most flights over to another carrier.
“For years, Midwest employees have built our airline’s reputation for ‘the best care in the air’ one flight at a time and now management is taking all of our hard work and outsourcing it to another carrier,” said Toni Higgins, AFA-CWA Midwest President. “Midwest flight attendants will be furloughed by the hundreds from decent American middle class jobs that will be outsourced by a management team who has broken its commitment to our loyal customers. These are not Midwest values.”
In July, when oil prices were at an all time high, Midwest management hired a specialty bankruptcy firm, announced that they would furlough over half of Midwest flight attendants and demanded draconian concessions from those who remained. Throughout discussions, Midwest management has remained steadfast in the proposed cost saving which includes up to 30 percent in wage cuts and drastic reductions to many other areas.
After management’s refusal to accept reasonable cost saving counter proposals from flight attendants and pilots, they announced that they would begin outsourcing flights to Republic Airways. Close to 300 Midwest flight attendants will lose their jobs as a direct result of the outsourcing. Midwest management however, has informed AFA-CWA that if certain concessions are met, they will be able to reclaim a portion of the jobs lost.
For over 60 years, the Association of Flight Attendants has been serving as the voice for flight attendants in the workplace, in the aviation industry, in the media and on Capitol Hill. More than 55,000 flight attendants at 20 airlines come together to form AFA-CWA, the world’s largest flight attendant union. AFA is part of the 700,000-member strong Communications Workers of America (CWA), AFL-CIO. Visit us at www.afanet.org.
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