As Congress plans on investing billions of dollars into the nation’s airports, the Service Employees International Union (SEIU), Communications Workers of America (CWA) and UNITE HERE on Oct. 7 will host a virtual roundtable with airport service workers and members of Congress to discuss extending national prevailing wage standards to frontline workers who keep airports safe, secure and accessible.
Although airlines received $54 billion in COVID-19 relief from the federal government, many airport workers – like, cabin cleaners, wheelchair agents, catering workers and customer service agents – still do not have sustainable wages, affordable healthcare or sick days.
In the roundtable discussion, workers will share the impact low wages and inadequate benefits have on their lives, passengers, and the overall safety and effectiveness of the nation’s aviation system, while calling for a federal solution – extending the Service Contract Act’s wage and healthcare supplement standards to airports that receive federal dollars. The largely Black and brown workforce is pushing for inclusion in the 56-year-old prevailing wage law that for decades has set a wage and benefit floor for federally contracted service workers.
Airports are critical publicly funded infrastructure that function as economic engines for entire cities and regions and are essential to global commerce and interpersonal connection. Although airports have received billions in federal funding, there are no uniform standards on how airports, airlines and local authorities should prevent or respond to a local emergency, much less a national crisis or global pandemic. Raising standards for airport workers not only improves their lives, but reduces turnover and leads to a better trained and prepared workforce, which makes airports safer and more secure. SEIU, UNITE HERE, and CWA have joined together to call on Congress to create wage and benefits standards for airport service workers to be included in any bill that includes funding for aviation.
