Thankful for our solidarity
November 26, 2020 — Dear Flying Partners, Friends and Family,
This Thanksgiving and holiday season is unlike any we’ve known—just as 2020 is unlike any year in the history of commercial aviation.
This year has presented historic challenges—to our jobs, to our industry, to our communities and to our hearts and minds. When we usually experience our busiest season—and the satisfaction and pride of helping families reunite and celebrate—we are reminded again just how much this pandemic has changed the world for all of us.
We want to acknowledge and honor the struggle and the loss. Tens of thousands of our flying partners are without a paycheck this holiday as we fight to extend the Payroll Support Program. As we look back at the year behind us and forward to the work ahead, we couldn’t be more grateful to be part of our crew and aviation worker family.
Before most Americans had even heard of COVID-19, Flight Attendants were already on the front lines, as we are in any communicable disease outbreak.
In the months since the World Health Organization (WHO) declared a pandemic, your professionalism, courage, solidarity and determination have shown once again just how critical our role is in keeping the country moving.
It was Flight Attendants who put forward the PSP and drove the efforts that delivered steady pay and benefits to hundreds of thousands of aviation workers through the first six months of the pandemic. It’s Flight Attendants who have fought for responsible mask policies and service protocols on board, whose professionalism has kept our cabins from becoming super spreader sites, and whose dedication has kept vital travel and cargo moving for our country.
We are grateful to share a common bond through an intimate understanding of what it means to be a safety professional, a first responder, and last line of defense. We remain ever vigilant to protect each other as family.
There are still long, challenging fights ahead. First and foremost, getting all of our flying partners back on the job by extending PSP, and stopping the ever-crushing cost cutting from being put on the backs of those of us on the frontlines. PSP is about protecting our jobs, but it's also about making sure we have the resources to maintain good jobs and good health practices. Even though there are promising vaccines on the horizon, the road back to “normal” will be long and hard. Flight Attendants will play a key role. We will move medical personnel, transport vaccines, and keep aviation moving for passengers. And in the coming weeks and months, we will need our strength to secure additional relief for ourselves and all those struggling.
This year, our union has shown what solidarity can achieve. It has not been without challenge and hardship, and the fight is far from over. But we are so grateful for the opportunity to work, fly and fight alongside all of you.
This Thanksgiving, we personally give thanks for each and every one of you.
With Gratitude and In Solidarity,
Sara Nelson, International President
Debora Sutor, International Vice President
Kevin Creighan, International Secretary-Treasurer
Quick AFA Info
- AFA EAP is always available at 800-424-2406.
- MSNBC: Furloughed Flight Attendants Urge Congress to Act on COVID-19 Relief
- Remain Vigilant During Holiday Travel
- AFA COVID Exposure/Test-Positive Reporting Form
- Join a #ReliefNow Event on our Day of Action December 1st
