United’s Cuts Will Negatively Impact Passengers
Inflight staffing cuts have taken place at American, Delta, and now they’re hitting United, but United flight attendants aren’t having it.
Since deregulation, airline employees have been burdened repeatedly with pay concessions, cuts to benefits and adverse changes to work rules in order to help their companies get through tough times. The airlines also turned to extracting more revenue from passengers through checked luggage fees, stingier frequent flier programs and reductions in legroom which has allowed them to cram more seats into airplane cabins.
Once airlines started making billions in profits off the backs of workers and passengers, executives rewarded themselves (they’d never stopped, even when airlines were losing money) with bonuses and instituted stock repurchase programs all while continuing to crank up the fees for travelers.
In the latest move, United has decided to come to workers again by cutting the number of flight attendants on many of their flights and they’re not the first. When one airline gets away with cuts, it’s not long before the others follow. It’s a race to the bottom.
These cuts will result in the degradation of inflight service as passengers must wait longer for everything, from cocktails at cruising altitude to receiving assistance in an emergency.
The Association of Flight Attendants has announced picketing activities which will take place all United bases. We’re joining them because we think there’ve been #EnoughCuts.
From AFA-CWA – Association of Flight Attendants
December 13 Day of Action #EnoughCuts
United Flight Attendants on Thursday, December 13 are protesting United’s newly announced staffing cut to match lower standards at American and Delta. The airline says pre-plating meals for business class passengers alleviates the need for one of aviation’s first responders.
Pre-plated meals are not a substitute for Flight Attendants in the aisles. Airlines are making record profits. In the last two years alone, Delta, American, Southwest and United have allocated $12 billion in profits to stock buybacks. None of those profits are being reinvested in the airline or the people on planes. Staffing cuts equate to fewer jobs and less crew to focus on safety and service.
Staffing should be increased in these times of profits, not decreased. Cuts were made during airline bankruptcies to reduce costs. There’s no excuse for cutting jobs today, but there’s every reason for United to up its game to make it impossible for other airlines to compete.
DECEMBER 13, 2018 PICKETING INFORMATION:
All times local. Times are subject to change due to permitting.
| CITY | TIME | LOCATION |
| Boston (BOS) | 0800-0900 | Upper Level – Terminal B |
| Chicago (ORD) | 1000-1100 | Upper Level Departures – Between Terminals 1 & 2 |
| Cleveland (CLE) | 0900-1000 | Departure Level – Door 7 |
| Denver (DEN) | 1200-1330 | Main Terminal (west side, outside United Check-in) |
| Frankfurt (FRA) | 0900-1000 | Terminal B – Directly in front of United Check-in |
| Hong Kong (HKG) | 0900-1100 | Departure Level – Terminal 1 – Door 3 |
| Guam (GUM) | 1700-1800 | Intersection of Marine Corps Drive and Route 14A (By JFK high school, Tamuning) |
| Honolulu (HNL) | 1100-1200 | Departure Level – In front of United Check-in |
| Houston (IAH) | 1000-1500 | JFK Blvd at Greens Road |
| Las Vegas (LAS) | 1030-1130 | Departure Level – Terminal 3 |
| London (LHR) | 1030-1230 | Arrival Level – Café Nero |
| Los Angeles (LAX) | 1100-1200 | Upper Level – Terminal 7 & 8 – Briefing at 1030 |
| Newark (EWR) | 1100-1300 | Terminal C – Level 2 Doors 1 & 5 | Level 3 Doors 1 & 3 – Briefing at 1030 |
| Tokyo Narita (NRT) | 1600-1700 | Departure Level Curbside – Near United Ticket Counters |
| San Francisco (SFO) | 1100-1300 | Upper Level Departures – Terminal 3 |
| Washington-Dulles (IAD) | 1400-1600 | Departure Level – In Front of United Check-in |
The truth is that we all want our airlines to succeed and we all want to take pride in a job well done. The principles of United’s CORE4 initiative – safe, caring, dependable, efficient – are welcome, but United’s mantra is #COREd when management fails to deliver their end of the bargain. #EnoughCuts!
The flying experience will continue to erode as long as airlines only answer to Wall Street. We are airlines, not hedge funds. The people on planes matter! Help us call on United to invest in the people on United Airlines’ flights – and stand up for increased staffing across the industry.
