Airport workers rallied in the rain Thursday morning near Charlotte Douglas International Airport, demanding changes in the American Airlines agreement.
The local Service Employees International Union chapter, along with city and state leaders, joined airport workers calling on the city to use its lease negotiations with American Airlines to improve the quality of life for airport employees.
City leaders are negotiating the Airline Use and Lease Agreement, which governs airline operations at Charlotte Douglas International Airport. Cabin cleaner Richard Bertolini, who works for American Airlines contractor ABM, said he and other workers are seeking better pay.
“We need a better understanding of our pay. You know, we need better wages for health care, for us to be able to get back and forth, to have clothes on our bodies, to even be able to eat at the airport because it’s so expensive," Bertolini said.
Charlotte City Council member JD Mazuera Arias said there are ways to make changes.
"There's a hearsay going on that we can't do this, that we can't do that, that North Carolina doesn't allow us to do certain things," Mazuera Arias said. "And here's the thing, there might be limitations to what we can do, but we need to start asking the question of not what we can't do, but what can we do?
While several airport workers are represented by unions, the SEIU does not have a collective bargaining agreement. Union representatives say ABM has refused to negotiate.
The Airline Use and Lease Agreement between the city of Charlotte and the airlines expires in June. City staff have said that the city can't dictate policies for the airline and its subcontractors in the lease agreement.
