Mesa Airlines Flight Attendants Vote 99.56% to Authorize Strike

The flight attendants of Mesa Airlines have voted overwhelmingly to authorize a strike at the airline which serves as a regional carrier for American and United Airlines.

The Association of Flight Attendants has issued the following press release: 

Washington, D.C. (March 29, 2017) —Mesa Flight Attendants, represented by the Association of Flight Attendants-CWA (AFA), today voted 99.56 percent for strike authorization. Mesa Airlines operates flights for American Airlines (as American Eagle) and United Airlines (as United Express). Mesa flight attendants are underpaid compared to other flight attendants flying for United and American airlines.

“Management has left us with no other choice. Mesa Flight Attendants are prepared to strike if released by the National Mediation Board,” said Heather Stevenson, AFA Mesa President. “Next week management can choose a different outcome by seriously negotiating a contract. Mesa Airlines is an important partner in the highly-profitable American Airlines and United Airlines networks. Fair contract now.”

Negotiations, overseen by the National Mediation Board, are scheduled to continue on April 5, 2017. Lack of progress could lead to the National Mediation Board (NMB) declaring that negotiations are deadlocked and releasing both parties into a 30-day “cooling off” period leading to a strike deadline.  AFA has a trademarked strike strategy known as CHAOS or Create Havoc Around Our System™.  With CHAOS, a strike could affect the entire system or a single flight.  The union decides when, where and how to strike without notice to management or passengers.

“Mesa Flight Attendants will not accept poverty wages,” said Sara Nelson, international president of the Association of Flight Attendants-CWA. “Enough is enough. Mesa Flight Attendants have the full backing of the 50,000 members of the Association of Flight Attendants-CWA. We are ready to do whatever it takes to achieve a fair contract.”

Mesa Airlines is headquartered in Phoenix, Arizona and provides 600 daily departures to 117 cities, 39 states, the District of Columbia, Canada and Mexico including Dallas, TX; Houston, TX; Phoenix, AZ; and Washington, DC.