Allegiant Air attendants in Punta Gorda highlight union fight

Casey Logan
The News-Press

Allegiant Air flight attendants picketed outside Punta Gorda Airport for seven hours Wednesday to highlight union efforts to settle a six-year contract fight.

About 20 flight attendants took part in the “informational” protest, which included leafleting, between 5 a.m. and noon, Thom McDaniel said.

McDaniel is international vice president of Transport Workers Union of America, AFL-CIO Local 577, who has led the negotiations with the Las Vegas-based airline.

An Allegiant Air flight attendant holds up a sign highlighting union efforts to settle a six-year contract fight.

Flight attendants “recently rejected a tentative agreement and approved a strike vote by 76 percent,” he said. “Last week the Transport Workers Union sent a letter to the National Mediation Board to be released from negotiations.”

As it stands, the next mediation remains scheduled for Aug. 22-24, according to Allegiant.

New report: Punta Gorda airport pumps $353.2 million into SW Florida economy

Allegiant is critically important to Punta Gorda Airport, which in July recorded its 45th consecutive month of year-over-year increases in passengers. Allegiant, the airport’s sole carrier, landed 398 flights there last month.

Allegiant Travel Co., Allegiant Air’s parent company, reported over $400 million in revenue for the year's second quarter, up 16 percent from last year.

Passengers board an Allegiant Air flight at Punta Gorda Airport.

“While Allegiant continues to make record profits, their flight attendants are the lowest paid in the industry,” McDaniel said. “They routinely have days extended to 16 or 20 hours and receive no extra compensation.”

Similar protests took place Wednesday at Orlando Sanford International Airport, St. Pete-Clearwater International Airport and Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport. Protests are scheduled next week at airports in Mesa, Arizona, and Las Vegas.

The informational picketing was not a work stoppage, so there was no impact on airline operations, said Hilarie Grey, spokeswoman for Allegiant Air.

“Informational picketing is a tactic that is entirely expected during the course of a long negotiation process,” she said. “Allegiant remains committed to negotiating in good faith, as we have been throughout the process.”

A picketer Wednesday outside Punta Gorda Airport.

The union requested a proffer of arbitration from the mediation board, the legal step made available by federal law when negotiations between a carrier and one of its unions has reached an impasse.

Under the Railway Labor Act, if the proffer of arbitration is refused by either the union or the company, a 30-day “cooling-off” period will begin. At the end of those 30 days, the parties can exercise “self-help.” During self-help, the union may choose to strike, and the company may choose to lock the workers out.

A picketer Wednesday outside Punta Gorda Airport.

The point of the protest was to spotlight recent reports of excessive heat on airplanes and maintenance delays this summer and union efforts to settle the contract fight.

After a tentative agreement was rejected by 76 percent of the membership, the flight attendants claim that Allegiant has been deliberately avoiding any meaningful negotiations.

“It is time for Allegiant to take care of business for both customers and employees,” McDaniel said.

Allegiant Travel Co. (Nasdaq: ALGT) was trading at $122.85 Wednesday afternoon, down 80 cents on the day.

Connect with this reporter: email clogan@news-press.com and follow on Twitter @caseylo