Alaska Airlines cabin crew are fighting for better working conditions. A recent survey shows how precarious the employees’ employment is.
There is a shortage of cockpit personnel worldwide, and the situation is becoming increasingly acute despite increasing demand. The major manufacturers Airbus and Boeing as well as the airline umbrella organization IATA expect a need for 500,000 to 600,000 new pilots in the next 20 years.
The shortage has caused salaries to explode in the US. Pilots can earn up to $500,000 a year.
If the trend continues like this, cabin crew could also become a scarce commodity. Not because there are too few people interested in the job, but because the pay is so poor that employees can barely live on their salaries.
At Alaska Airlines, 30 percent of cabin workers are considering leaving their jobs for financial reasons.
Nine percent were temporarily homeless
This is the result of a survey of Alaska Airlines flight attendants. The study was commissioned by the Association of Flight Attendants AFA-CWA to put pressure on airline management. A new collective agreement for cabin crew is still pending. Thousands of the airline’s flight attendants were surveyed.
The issue of housing shows how precarious the situation is. Nine percent said that because of their low wages they were forced to live in their car, in a homeless shelter or on the couch of friends and family. Another ten percent said that they still live with their parents for financial reasons.
Not 500 dollars per month
Almost 43 percent say they live in a shared apartment. Those who have their own apartment are prepared to travel long distances. Almost 30 percent live more than 160 kilometers from their home airport because rents in urban areas are unaffordable. 37 percent of flight attendants said they were dependent on state support during their time at the airline.
The net salary is not high. 59 percent of the respondents stated that they regularly have less than 500 dollars per month at their disposal. There is also a lack of money for social security. Almost two thirds of all participants have no emergency savings. As a result, employees regularly overdraw their checking account.
Negotiations to continue
“While Alaska Airlines executives are rewarding themselves with million-dollar bonuses, flight attendants in the field are literally having to choose between buying groceries and paying their bills,” criticized AFA President Jeffrey Peterson after the survey results were released.
Union representatives and Alaska Airlines will meet in the coming months to continue contract negotiations.