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AFA-CWA Press Releases

May 15, 2008

Delta Flight Attendant Election Receives Intense Scrutiny In Congressional Merger Hearing

In a Congressional hearing yesterday regarding the impact of the proposed merger between Delta Air Lines and Northwest Airlines, members of the U.S. House of Representative’s Subcommittee on Aviation grilled Delta CEO Richard Anderson on his failure to declare neutrality in Delta flight attendants’ union representation election. Delta flight attendants are in the midst of a vote seeking to become members of the Association of Flight Attendants-CWA (AFA-CWA). The election and the overall effects this merger would have on employees at both carriers were a major focus of the seven-hour hearing, dominating much of the question-and-answers periods.

May 8, 2008

Flight Attendants Testify: Without Unions Delta/Northwest Merger Poses Threat To Middle Class Jobs

Yesterday before the U.S. Senate Commerce Committee’s Subcommittee on Aviation Operations, Safety and Security, the Association of Flight Attendants-CWA (AFA-CWA) testified that the potential merger between Delta Air Lines and Northwest Airlines could have devastating effects that reach far beyond economic concerns. The proposed merger threatens to initiate the unraveling of the entire industry, destroying middle class jobs in the process.

“As we stand at the edge of a great change in this industry, it is important that we begin the debate, discussion and dialogue on what kind of national aviation system we want.” said AFA-CWA International President Patricia Friend. “This country has lacked a rational aviation policy since deregulation and our industry is being driven by the marketplace, leaving virtually no protections for airline workers. Delta management is trying to destroy the few protections employees do have through their collective bargaining agreements by using this merger as an opportunity to destroy unions. If management is successful, they will have the ability to remake the entire airline industry and destroy airline jobs as a stable and secure middle class career once and for all.”

April 29, 2008

Delta Flight Attendants Brief Congressional Leaders On Management's Voter Suppression

Washington, DC – Delta Air Lines flight attendants yesterday met with dozens of Congressional offices regarding Delta management’s aggressive voter suppression campaign during the current AFA-CWA representation election. As flight attendants enter their second week of voting, management continues to ramp up their tactics of intimidation and interference, pushing flight attendants not to vote for the union.

“Our entire campaign is about fairness and winning a democratic voice in the workplace, which is why management’s voter suppression effort is even more underhanded,” said Patricia Friend, International President, Association of Flight Attendants-CWA (AFA-CWA). Last week, under direct questioning by Rep. Betty Sutton (D-OH), Delta CEO Richard Anderson “testified that ‘management was supportive of the democratic process and would not engage in illegal interference,’” said Friend. “Their current actions to keep flight attendants from voting are anti-democratic and are a disgrace. Delta flight attendants have earned and deserve the right to have a voice in their future and a seat at the table.”

Management’s anti-union voter suppression campaign gained the attention of Capitol Hill earlier this month, prior to the start of the vote. In the U.S. Senate, 26 Senators submitted a letter to Delta Air Lines executives urging them to “demonstrate a genuine commitment to cooperative labor relations” and to remain neutral in this election. Delta executives never responded to the Senators’ letter. At the very moment Anderson was testifying in a U.S. House hearing on Delta’s announced merger with Northwest Airlines, management’s latest anti-union, voter suppression packet – with letters and a DVD – was being mailed to all flight attendants’ homes.

“Actions speak louder than words and management’s actions right now clearly indicate that they want to prevent us from having a union and having the right to negotiate a legally binding contract,” said Mara Levene, a Delta flight attendant and AFA-CWA activist. “Management will do whatever it takes to make sure that we do not have a voice. A solid majority of Delta flight attendants wanted this election and despite management’s fear tactics, bullying and intimidation, we remain determined and are voting for AFA-CWA representation.”

For AFA-CWA to be certified as the collective bargaining representative, a majority of the entire flight attendant workforce must cast a vote in order for the election to be valid. Anything less than this majority turnout will void the election entirely, even if the union gets a clear majority of the votes cast. The polls opened on April 23 and will close at 2:00 p.m. on May 28, 2008.

April 24, 2008

Delta-Northwest Merger Fails To Win Approval From Key Stakeholders

CEOs Reluctant and Vague While Addressing Effects on Employees

The Association of Flight Attendants-CWA (AFA-CWA), which represents Northwest flight attendants and is currently on the ballot for a representation election for Delta Air Lines flight attendants, testified before a U.S. House Judiciary subcommittee on the effects the pending merger between Delta and Northwest would have on flight attendants and other employees. AFA-CWA International Vice President Veda Shook, accompanied by flight attendants from Delta and Northwest, urged Congress to send a strong signal to airline management that this merger must not be used as a means to destroy the collective bargaining rights of the flight attendants and other airline employees.

“There are virtually no protections for airline workers in a merger and little attention has been paid to the extreme upheaval that mergers create for the thousands of airline employees who find themselves unemployed, whose lives are disrupted, or whose work may be outsourced,” said Shook. “The only protection employees have today is through their individual unions and collective bargaining agreements, but there is little to no protection for non-union airline employees. Bargaining rights are paramount if flight attendants are to have an opportunity to negotiate over the impact this merger will have on their work lives. If Delta executives use this merger to eliminate the rights of employees to have a seat at the table, not only will Northwest flight attendants lose the over sixty years of contractual rights they have fought for and won, but all flight attendants will be left fully exposed to the whims of management.”

Rep. Betty Sutton (D-OH) grilled Anderson regarding current labor relations and asked if management had responded to the letter signed by 26 U.S. Senators requesting Delta’s neutrality in the current Delta flight attendant election. Anderson’s reply was to simply repeat the carrier’s commitment to the democratic process. When Rep. Sutton reiterated her question as to whether Delta would commit to neutrality, Anderson supplied a series of veiled responses. Rep. Sutton confronted Anderson on his failure to answer the question regarding whether the carrier would remain neutral in the AFA-CWA representation election, and entered into the official record his reluctance to commit to neutrality.

“Flight attendants deserve to have an equal say in determining their futures instead of trusting airline executives to know what is in their best interest. Without putting in writing all their promises, these executives’ words are meaningless. Delta management is currently waging a rigorous voter suppression campaign in the flight attendant election, and they will not stop until they have created the world’s largest non-union airline, which is why it is imperative that we do not let this happen,” reiterated Shook.

April 22, 2008

U.S. Senators Urge Delta And Northwest To Include Employees In Upcoming Merger

Cite Upcoming Delta Flight Attendant Election and Maintaining Northwest Contracts as Major Issues

Washington, DC – In a letter yesterday to the CEOs of Delta Air Lines and Northwest Airlines, 26 U.S. Senators urged both parties to “demonstrate a genuine commitment to cooperative labor relations” and to remain neutral in future union elections, particularly for Delta flight attendants who begin voting for AFA-CWA representation on April 23.

“We applaud the Senators for their effort to ensure that the voices of flight attendants and other employees are heard throughout this merger process,” said Patricia Friend, Association of Flight Attendants-CWA (AFA-CWA) International President. “This letters confirms the efforts that Delta flight attendants have achieved over the past 18 months in order to participate in this historic election. They have worked tirelessly for the right to negotiate for their future and to have a say in how the merger and potential outsourcing or any layoffs might affect them. We also applaud the Senators for insisting that the collective bargaining rights for Northwest Airlines flight attendants are protected in this merger.”

Senator Edward Kennedy (D-MA), who led the effort to send the letter stated, “Delta and Northwest Airlines should honor the loyalty and hard work of their employees by immediately offering them a seat at the table in the merger talks. No employees should have to fear that they will lose their jobs, their benefits, and even their union representation without even being given a voice in these negotiations. We also hope that the merger process will not be used as a way to eliminate the union representation that has existed at Northwest for decades.”

The letter comes just three days before AFA-CWA and the CEOs from Delta and Northwest are scheduled to testify before a U.S. House of Representatives committee on the merger of the two airlines. The hearing is scheduled for 10:30 a.m EDT on Thursday, April 24 in Rayburn House Office Building.

April 14, 2008

Northwest Flight Attendants To Remain Focused On Contract During Merger

Washington, DC – As Northwest Airlines and Delta Air Lines today officially announced the merger of the two carriers, the Association of Flight Attendants-CWA (AFA-CWA) Northwest Airlines Master Executive Council President Kevin Griffin issued the following statement:

“Our top priority now is to work with our Delta colleagues to preserve our union representation and to negotiate a contract that combines the best from our Northwest contract and the best from the Delta policy manual, along with raises and other long-overdue improvements into a legally enforceable contract.

“AFA-CWA has worked extensively on a broad-based strategy in response to this merger and we will aggressively defend flight attendants’ rights, as well as our contract. Our contract remains in full force and effect and we expect management to live up to the letter of that agreement. AFA-CWA also expects that past attacks against our profession, such as international outsourcing, will not resurface under this proposed merger.

“If this merger is going to be successful, Delta management needs to put aside its history of anti-union tactics and concentrate on working with the flight attendants to address our issues. Mergers are very difficult in the best of circumstances, often alienating front line workers who are the face of the airline. Delta management needs to remain neutral in the Delta flight attendant’s representation election, and let the flight attendants decide their own futures.

“If the Delta flight attendants vote to join AFA-CWA before the merger, our union will represent the combined flight attendant workforce. If the Delta flight attendants remain non-union at the time of the merger, then there will be a representation election for the combined workforce with AFA-CWA on the ballot. We will win that election, retain our bargaining rights and negotiate a new contract together.

“Northwest flight attendants have voiced their concerns regarding a merger to management and we stick by our vow to protect our members. Any transaction that fails to address our basic issues will be met with strong resistance.”

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 .