9.01.20 – APFA Week Of Action: A Week Of Action To Save Jobs, Targets White House And Congress

Tuesday, September 1, 2020

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Media Contact: Paul Hartshorn, Jr.
[email protected]

APFA Week of Action
A Week of Action to Save Jobs,
Targets White House and Congress

(Euless, TX) – “Washington has just one month left to prevent irreversible damage—to our aviation workforce and our national economy. Inaction in Washington is jeopardizing over 75,000 US aviation jobs that could disappear on October 1st,” said Julie Hedrick, National President of the Association of Professional Flight Attendants.

The Payroll Support Program must be extended before 8,099 American Airlines Flight Attendants lose their jobs and healthcare virtually overnight. October 1st is fast approaching, so legislative action must be taken quickly. The 6-month Payroll Support Program passed in March as part of the CARES Act has successfully kept frontline aviation workers on the job and connected to health benefits amidst this crisis. Now we are in the final days before massive layoffs cannot be undone, the exact fate that Congress and the White House had invested in to prevent.

This week, the 26,000 members of APFA are participating in a Week of Action to urge Washington to act:

Monday – Contact the White House
Tuesday – Social Media Blast in support of the PSP
Wednesday – #ReliefNow Rallies in Dallas and Philadelphia
Thursday – Target District Offices in Swing Districts
Friday – Handwritten Letter Campaign to Congress

“When our airlines suffer, our national and local economies cannot reach their full potential. When jobs are lost, family members feel the pain. Millions of Americans will suffer if our aviation industry is not kept strong,” APFA National President Julie Hedrick wrote in a letter to President Trump last week. “Americans will be ready to travel again, but aviation workers will need Congress’s support until we get through this pandemic.”

Hedrick further expressed concern over the lack of a stimulus package, catastrophic job loss, and our nation’s economic future. “The political games must stop now. This is not public service. Our citizens are struggling. On October 1st, thousands of US aviation jobs will disappear unless Congress and the White House compromise immediately. These are our lives and our livelihoods. Right when our nation is getting back to work, over 75,000 aviation workers will be turned over to a weak job market or unemployment insurance. Congress: Save our jobs. Keep us flying. Let us propel the nation’s economic recovery. Negotiate a stimulus bill. Extend the Payroll Support Program before it is too late. We will NOT accept inaction.”