Tomorrow (Tuesday, November 26), in the middle of the busiest Thanksgiving travel season ever, at least 17 U.S. airports around the country will host demonstrations of 200 to 1,000 people each. Per this Forbes story, Unite Here, which represents airline catering workers, has planned the demonstrations as the “latest effort to secure improvements in pay, health care and working conditions for airport caterers, who prepare the food for onboard service.” Here are the 17 airports affected:
- Charlotte Douglas International Airport (CLT)
- Chicago-O’Hare International Airport (ORD)
- Dallas-Ft. Worth International Airport (DFW)
- Denver International Airport (DEN)
- Detroit Wayne International Airport (DTW)
- Daniel K. Inouye International Airport (HNL)
- Houston Bush International Airport (IAH)
- Los Angeles International Airport (LAX)
- Miami International Airport (MIA)
- Minneapolis International Airport (MSP)
- John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK)
- Philadelphia International Airport (PHL)
- Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport (PHX)
- San Diego International Airport (SAN)
- San Francisco International Airport (SFO)
- Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (SEA-TAC)
- Washington Reagan National Airport (DCA)
How the airport demonstrations will affect the experience at each airport will vary. At LAX, my home airport, for example, a procession of demonstrators is planned for 5pm, starting at 98th Street and Airport Boulevard per an email from Unite Here. In general, however, they offer another reason to leave yourself tons of time at the airport tomorrow, a day on which 2.8 million flyers are expected in the U.S. If you’ll be one of them, plan accordingly. And if your flight is delayed or canceled, see this story: What to Do: Weather Delays and Flight Cancellations
More on the planned demonstrations
Forbes writes that Unite Here is “bargaining for a national wage floor of $15, plus added seniority pay.” The group represents about “300,000 members, including about 140,000 hotel workers and 50,000 in the airline industry – 20,000 in catering and 30,000 in airport concessions.”
And United Here is seeking the attention of American Airlines, primarily. “Demonstrations will focus on American Airlines,” writes Forbes, “even though American does not directly employ catering workers, but rather subcontracts with [LSG Sky Chefs and Gate Gourmet]. ‘You can’t take on every airline,’ [Unite Here president] Taylor said. ‘You have to deal with the largest. If American agrees that helps overall.'”
See the full story here for more on the situation.
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Gee, I thought it would be these climate change brain stems…