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Workers At American Airlines Subsidiary Say Starting Hourly Pay Is Too Low

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While the airline industry has been steadily boosting wages and benefits since it entered a post-recession recovery, outside of the major carriers it retains pockets of workers – employed at regional airlines as well as caterers and other vendors – who say they have been left behind.

“We want a livable wage,” said Anthony Barden, a 14-year ramp agent at Piedmont Airlines who is president of Charlotte Local 3645 of the Communications Workers of America. “We start at $9.70 an hour, and we top out at $15.60.”

Workers doing the same job at American Airlines, Piedmont’s parent company, make twice as much and “keep getting raises,” Barden said. He was among about three dozen workers who demonstrated Monday at Charlotte Douglas International Airport, although the demonstration was limited by city officials to just 10 people at a time.

Charlotte Douglas is American’s second largest hub with 677 daily departures. About 55% of those are on regional airlines who contract with American. Salisbury, Md.-based Piedmont, which is owned by American Airlines Group Inc., provides airport agents and baggage handlers for all of the regional carriers that fly for American. It also operates 47 daily Charlotte departures.

Of American’s 11,500 Charlotte employees, about 1,600 work for Piedmont. CWA is in contract talks with Piedmont, where it represents about 4,500 workers, with large work groups at American hubs in Philadelphia and Phoenix as well as Charlotte. (CWA also represents about 14,000 agents at American.)

The CWA/Piedmont contract became amendable in January 2017. Both sides say talks have been going smoothly. The next bargaining sessions is scheduled for the last week of January.

“We’ve been bargaining for a little over and a year, and we’re making progress,” said Marge Krueger, director of passenger service for the CWA airline division. “But wages seem to be a problem. It’s not a living wage. It’s half the wage of mainline employees, who work on bigger planes but do the same sort of work.”

Krueger said Piedmont airport workers have no pay scale, but are given raises based on performance. “We’re trying to get a regular pay scale,” she said. The two sides have agreed to improvements in the grievance procedure, leave of absence provisions and the ability to transfer between airports, she said.

Piedmont spokeswoman Jackie Jennings said, “Piedmont and union representatives have worked collaboratively to make good progress on a significant number of proposals, and a majority of those proposals have been mutually resolved.

“We look forward to our next working session in January, and hope to reach a tentative agreement that provides a secure and sustainable future for our team,” Jennings said.

Unlike many workers on picket lines, Piedmont workers involved in the airport demonstration did not paint a portrait of a troubled workplace.

Some praised the health care coverage. Under the Affordable Care Act, 30 hours of work a week means eligibility for health care benefits, although many Charlotte Piedmont workers don't reach that level.

Piedmont workers also get flight benefits on American and can apply for jobs at American, but they would start at the bottom of the seniority scale, meaning even more evening and holiday work.

“Piedmont has trouble hanging on to people,” Krueger said. Some have second jobs.

Vonda Hardy, a CWA Staff representative and a former US Airways agent who was at the airport, said, “We’re standing up for workers’ rights. We have a good relationship with the company, but we want them to recognize our plight.”

The reception at the airport, where the workers demonstrated on the departing passengers level, was generally positive, Barden said. “A lot of people honk at us and passengers coming in, a lot of them, say, ‘Keeping doing it — keep fighting,” he said.