Flight Attendant Union and Pinnacle Airlines Management Reach Tentative Agreement
Washington, DC - Pinnacle Airlines Flight Attendants, represented by the Association of Flight Attendants-CWA (AFA) today announced a tentative agreement with airline management. The agreement was reached with the assistance of the National Mediation Board. AFA was successful in reaching terms that preserved Flight Attendant job security and minimized the impact on wages and costs of health care benefits.
"The AFA Pinnacle negotiating committee and our team of experts were able to counter virtually all of management's proposed cuts in order to protect our jobs and minimize the impact on Flight Attendants. Throughout this process, management aggressively tried to manipulate the bankruptcy code in order to impose across the board cuts that were not necessary. However, through the solidarity and determination of Pinnacle Flight Attendants, we were able to push back and focus on creative solutions that significantly reduced the obscene concessions management was attempting to impose," said Terry French, AFA Pinnacle President.
Details of the tentative agreement will be sent to the 1,400 Flight Attendants prior to the ratification vote. A voting schedule has not been established. Pinnacle Airlines, a Delta Connection carrier, filed for bankruptcy in April. In May, Pinnacle management requested $3.6 million in Flight Attendant cost reductions and in August, requested permission from the bankruptcy court to impose terms totaling $6.4 million.
The Association of Flight Attendants is the world’s largest Flight Attendant union. Focused 100 percent on Flight Attendant issues, AFA has been the leader in advancing the Flight Attendant profession for 67 years. Serving as the voice for Flight Attendants in the workplace, in the aviation industry, in the media and on Capitol Hill, AFA has transformed the Flight Attendant profession by raising wages, benefits and working conditions. Nearly 60,000 Flight Attendants come together to form AFA, part of the 700,000-member strong Communications Workers of America (CWA), AFL-CIO. Visit us at www.afacwa.org.