At Northwest Airlines, most workers were union. At Delta, most workers were not. Now that Delta has completed its takeover of Northwest, more than 15,000 former Northwest workers no longer have a union. These workers – many of them based in Minnesota, most of them in the Machinists or Flight Attendants unions – lost elections in late 2010. They were outnumbered at the ballot box by the much-larger, nonunion workforce at Delta.
In general, however, Minnesota passengers have plenty of choices if they are trying to “fly union” on commercial carriers at the Brainerd, Duluth, Minneapolis-St. Paul or Rochester airports. (We also looked at airlines that fly to the border cities of Fargo, La Crosse and Sioux Falls.)
The accompanying chart shows the results. It shows how unionized each airline is, and which workers at which airlines have union contracts.
Especially in today’s rocky aviation industry, having a voice and having strength at the bargaining table makes a real difference for airline workers, for their families and for passengers, says Edward Wytkind, president of the Transportation Trades Department at the AFL-CIO.
Collective bargaining brings, among other things, more training and more stability to employees’ everyday work, Wytkind says. That means “passengers benefit from a safer and better flight experience.”
Regional complications
Unfortunately, booking a flight on a particular airline doesn’t mean you actually fly that airline. That’s because most major carriers in Minnesota outsource much of their actual flying. This is especially true if you take short or connecting flights or fly smaller, “regional” jets.
Many Delta flights, for example, use the “Delta Connection” name. That means you could be on any one of four airlines – Comair, Pinnacle, Republic or Eagan-based Mesaba (which actually is a wholly owned subsidiary of Pinnacle.). All four of these "Delta Connection" airlines actually are more unionized than Delta is.
It gets even more confusing. Pinnacle and Republic operate flights for other airlines, too. Both fly as US Airways Express. Pinnacle flies under the Continental Connection and United Express names. Republic flies as Continental Express and Frontier (which still has some planes that carry the Midwest name).
Not exactly ‘one big union’
The unions that represent airline workers are just as fragmented. Yes, a few major unions – the Air Line Pilots Association, Association of Flight Attendants/CWA, Machinists, Teamsters, and Transport Workers – represent tens of thousands of workers coast to coast.
But even among airlines that serve Minnesota, seven different unions represent pilots. Seven unions represent flight attendants. Four unions represent mechanics. Some of these airline unions are affiliated with the AFL-CIO, but many are independent. And so it goes.
Michael Kuchta is communications coordinator for AFSCME Council 5. This article is adapted from Council 5’s Stepping Up magazine.
At Northwest Airlines, most workers were union. At Delta, most workers were not. Now that Delta has completed its takeover of Northwest, more than 15,000 former Northwest workers no longer have a union. These workers – many of them based in Minnesota, most of them in the Machinists or Flight Attendants unions – lost elections in late 2010. They were outnumbered at the ballot box by the much-larger, nonunion workforce at Delta.
In general, however, Minnesota passengers have plenty of choices if they are trying to “fly union” on commercial carriers at the Brainerd, Duluth, Minneapolis-St. Paul or Rochester airports. (We also looked at airlines that fly to the border cities of Fargo, La Crosse and Sioux Falls.)
The accompanying chart shows the results. It shows how unionized each airline is, and which workers at which airlines have union contracts.
Especially in today’s rocky aviation industry, having a voice and having strength at the bargaining table makes a real difference for airline workers, for their families and for passengers, says Edward Wytkind, president of the Transportation Trades Department at the AFL-CIO.
Collective bargaining brings, among other things, more training and more stability to employees’ everyday work, Wytkind says. That means “passengers benefit from a safer and better flight experience.”
Regional complications
Unfortunately, booking a flight on a particular airline doesn’t mean you actually fly that airline. That’s because most major carriers in Minnesota outsource much of their actual flying. This is especially true if you take short or connecting flights or fly smaller, “regional” jets.
Many Delta flights, for example, use the “Delta Connection” name. That means you could be on any one of four airlines – Comair, Pinnacle, Republic or Eagan-based Mesaba (which actually is a wholly owned subsidiary of Pinnacle.). All four of these "Delta Connection" airlines actually are more unionized than Delta is.
It gets even more confusing. Pinnacle and Republic operate flights for other airlines, too. Both fly as US Airways Express. Pinnacle flies under the Continental Connection and United Express names. Republic flies as Continental Express and Frontier (which still has some planes that carry the Midwest name).
Not exactly ‘one big union’
The unions that represent airline workers are just as fragmented. Yes, a few major unions – the Air Line Pilots Association, Association of Flight Attendants/CWA, Machinists, Teamsters, and Transport Workers – represent tens of thousands of workers coast to coast.
But even among airlines that serve Minnesota, seven different unions represent pilots. Seven unions represent flight attendants. Four unions represent mechanics. Some of these airline unions are affiliated with the AFL-CIO, but many are independent. And so it goes.
Michael Kuchta is communications coordinator for AFSCME Council 5. This article is adapted from Council 5’s Stepping Up magazine.