1.26.12 – APFA Remains Strongly Committed to the Passage of a Clean FAA Reauthorization Bill

The Association of Professional Flight Attendants Remains Strongly Committed to the Passage of a Clean FAA Reauthorization Bill

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

JANUARY 26, 2012
CONTACT: Julie Fredrick (817) 437-8830

(Euless, TX) – The Association of Professional Flight Attendants remains strongly committed to the passage of a clean FAA Reauthorization bill. A clean bill, by definition, would focus on the much-needed safety, security, and infrastructure enhancements to the nation’s aviation system and would not include language that rewrites seventy-five years of labor law.

APFA President Laura Glading said, “While we appreciate Majority Leader Reid’s effort to pass a long-term reauthorization, we are disappointed that a compromise on this critical provision was made absent the input of organized labor.

The Railway Labor Act and the National Mediation Board responsible for upholding it represent aviation industry unions’ first, last, and only line of defense against unfair and exploitive business practices of airline management. We believe the FAA Reauthorization bill, as drafted, would gut the RLA and strip the NMB of its authority and as such, we cannot support it.”

In the coming days, APFA will be making its case to Senator Reid and the members of the conference committee.

About APFA – Founded in 1977, the Association of Professional Flight Attendants (APFA) is the largest independent Flight Attendant union in the nation. It represents more than 16,000 Flight Attendants at American Airlines. APFA Members live in almost every state of the nation and serve millions of Americans as they travel the nation and the world. In 2003, APFA played a major role in keeping AmericanAirlines solvent and out of bankruptcy by giving back an employee bailout of $340 million in annual salary and benefits, for a total of over $2 billion and counting. APFA had been in negotiations with American for almost four years when the carrier filed for chapter 11-bankruptcy protection on November 29, 2011. Laura Glading is serving in her first four-year term as president of the union.