Deteriorating relations between United Airlines and the Flight Attendants union

[marmar]

(In These Times) As United Airlines moves to aggressively cut the size of its workforce, labor relations between the company and the Association of Flight Attendants (AFA) union are taking a turn for the worse.

On January 15, United managers announced their intention to put nearly 700 attendants on “involuntary furlough” starting April 1. It’s a move that circumvents the collective bargaining process and will harm AFA members, union spokesperson Christopher Clarke tells Working In These Times.

Currently, AFA has about 13,000 members at United, with those numbers continuing to fall. In 2010, the company merged with Continental Airlines, which led to a reduction in the total workforce of the combined airlines. But according to Clarke, United began cutting flight attendant numbers even before the merger. In fact, he says, the company has been steadily eliminating attendant jobs for the last five years.

In the past, however, Clarke claims United worked with the union to negotiate strategies—including voluntary retirements and position-sharing plans—that would soften the blow to workers’ livelihoods. Now, he says, United has unilaterally declared involuntary furloughs in defiance of the union contract. Though the attendants are technically eligible to be recalled, such a prospect seems unlikely considering United’s shrinking employee numbers. ....................(more)

The complete piece is at: http://inthesetimes.com/working/entry/16229/united_airlines_gets_tough_on_flight_attendants_union/

[AngryAmish]

1. This headline is misleading.

It is impossible for relations to get worse. They have been toxic for decades.