Flight Attendants Protest Slow Contract Negotiations With Hawaiian Airlines

Hawaiian Airlines flight attendants, represented by the Association of Flight Attendants-CWA (AFA), and labor allies demonstrated at the Daniel K. Inouye International Airport (HNL) on Wednesday, June, 26, 2019, to protest protracted negotiations with Hawaiian Airlines management for a new contract.

“Hawaiian Airlines is successful and growing, in large part due to previous sacrifices and persistent work of flight attendants on the front lines,” said Sharon Soper, AFA Hawaiian president. “Two years of negotiations is too long to negotiate a new contract that reflects our contributions and hard work. Flight Attendants turned out in force today on the picket line demonstrating our unity and resolve to fight for fair wages, better retirement security and continued job protections that define our work.”

Hawai‘i ranks among the highest cost of living for any US state. Hawaiian Flight Attendant pay has fallen in comparison with the rest of the industry while the cost of living and medical expenses continue to rise. After 20 years of calm labor relations, Hawaiian Airlines flight attendants are taking their fight for a contract public, according to the AFA press release.

“The opportunities for our airline and our state are extraordinary right now,” Soper said. “Management needs to remove distractions and get serious about making Hawaiian everything it can be. That starts with negotiating a contract that gives those of us on the frontlines all we need to do our jobs and share in the profits we help create. We are done with delay tactics. Public protest will continue as we turn up the heat all summer long and until we get this done.”

The AFA represents 50,000 flight attendants at 20 airlines, including those at Hawaiian Airlines.