Charlotte airport service workers may go on strike during record holiday travel rush
Service workers at the Charlotte airport may go on strike for 24 hours during the Thanksgiving or Christmas travel season as they continue to demand higher wages and protest unfair labor practices.
Airport employees who work for ABM and Prospect, two contractors with American Airlines, announced the possibility of a strike Friday morning, according to a news release from the Service Employees International Union or SEIU. Workers are organizing with the 32BJ sector of SEIU.
The announcement comes as the Charlotte airport is prepping for what is expected to be a record-setting Thanksgiving travel period. It’s unclear how a possible strike would affect travelers.
The workers don’t directly work for American Airlines, company officials said. Requests for comment to ABM and Prospect weren’t immediately returned.
These employees are subcontractors who clean cabins, empty trash from planes and escort wheelchair passengers at Charlotte Douglas International Airport, the release said.
Demands for living wages
With housing prices on the rise in Charlotte, workers said they are fighting poverty and in need of living wages, according to SEIU.
Service workers make between $12.50 and $19 an hour, according to SEIU, which, at its highest, is about $39,500 gross annual income.
In Charlotte, a household would need to make more than $70,640 to “comfortably” afford average rent costs, which are about $1,450 for a one-bedroom, according to Apartments.com and housing data from the National Low Income Housing Coalition.
“Some workers have become homeless, sleep in their cars, or cram their families into rented rooms, while others face the looming threat of eviction,” the release said.
The union said that about 40% of airport workers reported being cost-burdened, meaning they pay more than 30% of their income toward housing.
CLT holiday travel rush
The strike is pending an upcoming vote. It’s unclear when that vote will occur.
The strike would come at one of the busiest times for the airport. About 1.02 million passengers are predicted to depart from the Charlotte airport the Thanksgiving weekend, the airport announced Thursday. That’s an approximate 7% increase compared to last year and a 20% increase from pre-pandemic 2019.
American Airlines is expecting to see almost 8.3 million customers in its network this weekend, the airport also announced.
Since the workers aren’t employed by CLT, the airport deferred all comment requests to their employers.
This story was originally published November 22, 2024 at 11:27 AM.
