February 6, 2012 - Flight Attendants from over 20 airlines, represented by the Association of Flight Attendants-CWA (AFA), and concerned citizens from across the country will hold an OccuFLY protest at Los Angeles International Airport today.  

Flight Attendants and supporters will protest the latest attack on collective bargaining rights included in the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) reauthorization bill. 

The FAA Reauthorization has rapidly been moving toward passage over the past two weeks. On Friday, the House of Representatives voted, passing 248 to 169 accepting the conference report. The Senate is scheduled to vote today on whether to accept the report.  

This is the last step before sending the bill to President Obama for signing. The legislation authorizes $15.9 billion per year for federal aviation programs thru 2015 and includes much needed Next Gen financing.

Veda Shook, Association of Flight Attendants (AFA) International President said “The FAA reauthorization should be focused on addressing the pressing safety issues that will ensure that the U.S. aviation system remains the safest in the world. 

“Instead, Congress has used this process to gratuitously attack American workers in order to satisfy corporate executives. This controversial labor provision is nothing less than an attack by the 1% against the 99%. We saw it in Wisconsin and Ohio, now we see it for airline and rail workers who are simply seeking the benefits of collective bargaining or fighting to hang on to collective bargaining rights.” 

Through a secret deal, House Republicans and Senate leadership have proposed drastic changes to the Railway Labor Act (RLA). The RLA, one of the nation’s first labor laws, was crafted cooperatively by labor and management and has not been changed in nearly eight decades without the agreement of both employer and employee representatives.