AFA Backs Bill to Create National List of Unruly Flyers
The federal mask mandate on flights may be ending soon, but that won’t eliminate the threat of unruly passengers disrupting flights, the head of the largest U.S. flight attendants union warns.
“I don’t view the two as related,” Association of Flight Attendants (AFA) President Sara Nelson said. “Clearly we have had conflicts on masks, but the issue of violence on board is a bigger issue: It’s about not wanting to follow the rules.”
Nelson and the AFA are putting their weight behind a new bill introduced by Representatives Eric Swalwell (D-Calif.), Brian Fitzpatrick (R-Penn.), and Senator Jack Reed (D-R.I.) that would stiffen penalties for disruptive behavior onboard aircraft. “Unfortunately, too many of our pilots, flight attendants and crew members are dealing with unacceptable abuse from passengers — everything from kicking to spitting to biting,” Swalwell said in introducing the bill. “This behavior is not only inappropriate, but it also puts other crew and passengers at risk.”
The bill would create a national list of passengers who are barred from flying due to disruptive behavior. This would be separate from the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s (FBI) “no-fly” list of suspected terrorists or criminals. Instead, the list would be managed by the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) and would allow redress for passengers who think they were included in error.
Currently, it is up to each airline to determine whether a passenger should be banned, with nothing preventing a passenger barred from one airline from buying a ticket on another.
Nelson called this provision important, but acknowledged that it could raise civil-liberty concerns, particularly in an industry already grappling with highly politicized reactions to mask mandates and other Covid-mitigation measures. “Individual airlines now can ban people, but there is no transparency, and information from one airline can’t be shared with other airlines,” she told Airline Weekly.
Flight crews reported almost 6,000 unruly-passenger incidents last year, more than the previous 30 years combined. Non-compliance with the federal mask mandate — a deeply polarizing mandate in the U.S. — resulted in several altercations, but it wasn’t the only factor. Alcohol is another, Nelson said.
Although rules limit the number of drinks an airport restaurant or bar can serve, the rules are not strictly enforced. Moreover, during the pandemic, airport concessions often encouraged to-go alcohol sales, despite rules prohibiting passengers from drinking alcohol they brought on board. “There needs to be better enforcement of rules around alcohol,” Nelson said. “There also needs to be a crackdown on concessionaires that are pushing alcohol to-go.”
But enforcement of the rules is a more intractable problem. Airports are typically policed by local law enforcement. The aircraft itself is the federal government’s jurisdiction. Nelson said there needs to be better coordination between law enforcement agencies to prevent excessive alcohol sales and to arrest disruptive passengers after landing.
The Swalwell-Reed bill addresses that by centralizing offenders in one list, Nelson said. “This sends a message that there are consequences for bad behavior,” she said. “Flying is a privilege, not a right.”
AFA to Capitalize on U.S. Labor Momentum
Separately, Association of Flight Attendants President Sara Nelson noted that the labor movement now is enjoying a “moment,” with several high-profile and successful organizing efforts at Amazon warehouses and Starbucks stores. AFA is focused on seizing the moment to spread the gospel of unionization in all industries, but also at airlines that aren’t organized.
“There is incredible energy and momentum among Delta flight attendants,” Nelson said. “We are on track to file [for unionization] this year.”
Delta historically has fended off organizing drives. The workforce opted not to organize after the Atlanta-based carrier absorbed the unionized Northwest Airlines flight attendant workgroup in 2009. But AFA hopes to change that.
AFA has found a receptive audience among the more junior members of Delta’s 24,000 flight attendant workforce, Nelson said. “Younger workers are taking charge, and the more senior workers are excited by what they’re seeing.” ‘
In the larger economy, the path to unionization is steep. Despite recent successes, the numbers remain small. “People have won in the thousands, but there are tens of millions of workers in the country,” Nelson said. There is an awakening of solidarity and the power that generates, but we have a job to do to help the tens of millions of people who want to join unions.”
Wizz, Unions Square Off Over U.S. Permit
The war of words over Wizz Air’s application for a U.S. foreign air carrier permit and exemption continues to rage on, as the European Commission now has weighed in to defend the Hungarian discounter’s application. Wizz Air does not currently have any aircraft capable of flying to the U.S. in its fleet, but it is applying for permission to fly a cargo Airbus A330 owned by the Hungarian government to the U.S. A coalition of unions and other stakeholders have objected to Wizz Air’s application, claiming the airline is anti-union and thus violates the U.S.-EU open skies agreement’s labor protections. The European Cockpit Association has alleged Wizz Air’s safety oversight is lax.
But EASA clapped back, saying in a recent filing with the U.S. Transportation Department that the union allegations are “unsubstantiated and lack any evidence.” EASA also ponted out that the EC’s oversight ensures that carriers comply with all applicable labor rules.
But unions aren’t buying it. “Facts are stubborn things and the fact is Wizz Air is an anti-union, foreign air carrier whose safety culture raises concerns. It is clear they do not have an adequate safety culture because Wizz has almost certainly not implemented the Safety Management System process, the foundation of which is a pro-active, non-punitive safety reporting and analysis process,” Air Line Pilots Association President Joe DePete said. “Given this record, ALPA is calling on the United States Department of Transportation to work to ensure labor protections are in place, consistent with the Biden administration’s strong support for workers’ rights.”
Labor Briefs
- JetBlue pilots ratified a new agreement that grew out of a dispute over the airline’s Northeast Alliance with American Airlines, the Air Line Pilots Association (ALPA) said. When the Northeast Alliance was announced in 2021, pilots objected, arguing that JetBlue struck a deal that could change pilots’ working conditions without the consent of the union. Without the new letter of agreement, the dispute would have gone to arbitration. Details were not released, but an ALPA representative said the deal “provides improvement to our current pay scale and sick-leave policies.”
- Is SAS‘ new CEO Anko Van der Werff cleaning house less than a year after taking the helm of the Scandinavian airline? On April 4, Chief Commercial Officer Karl Sandlund announced his departure for another opportunity with plans to leave no later than October. Sundland is the second C-suite executive to announce their departure from the airline in as many weeks after Chief Financial Officer Magnus Örnberg unveiled his departure on March 23.