Hawaiian Flight Attendants Vote to Authorize a Strike

News Release from AFA

Washington, DC (November 20, 2019) — Hawaiian Airlines Flight Attendants, represented by the Association of Flight Attendants-CWA (AFA), today voted 99.9 percent to authorize a strike, with 95.1 percent participating.

“This historic strike vote takes our contract fight to an entirely new level. Hawaiian Flight Attendants are sending an emphatic message to management: Delay is not acceptable; we demand the contract we deserve because we earn it every day. We are safety professionals, and management must acknowledge our worth. Hawaiian is profitable and the time has come for Flight Attendants to share in what we have helped create,” said MEC President, Sharon Soper. Hawaiian Flight Attendants are paid less than their counterparts in the industry, yet they are based in the most expensive cities in the United States and are renowned for their safety record and level of service.   

Negotiations began in January 2017 and are overseen by the National Mediation Board (NMB).  Lack of progress could lead to the NMB declaring that negotiations are deadlocked and releasing both parties into a 30-day "cooling off" period leading to a strike deadline. AFA has a trademarked strike strategy known as CHAOS or Create Havoc Around Our System™. With CHAOS, a strike could affect the entire system or a single flight. The union decides when, where, and how to strike without notice to management or passengers.

Hawaiian Flight Attendants have picketed at Honolulu and LAX airports over the last six months. Hawaiian pilots negotiated a new contract in 2017, but Flight Attendants still face labor unrest.  

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The Association of Flight Attendants is the Flight Attendant union. Focused 100 percent on Flight Attendant issues, AFA has been the leader in advancing the Flight Attendant profession for 74 years. Serving as the voice for Flight Attendants in the workplace, in the aviation industry, in the media and on Capitol Hill, AFA has transformed the Flight Attendant profession by raising wages, benefits and working conditions. Nearly 50,000 Flight Attendants come together to form AFA, part of the 700,000-member strong Communications Workers of America (CWA), AFL-CIO. Visit us at www.afacwa.org.

SA: Hawaiian Airlines flight attendants vote to authorize strike