Charlotte airport workers strike as busy Thanksgiving travel week begins
FILE-Passengers walk between terminals at Charlotte Douglas International Airport in Charlotte, North Carolina. (Photo by Chris Graythen/Getty Images)
Workers at Charlotte Douglas International Airport are on strike as they push for better wages amid the start of the busy week of Thanksgiving holiday travel.
Several hundred workers are expected to walk off the job and continue the work stoppage on Monday.
These striking workers are also planning to hold a late-morning rally and a "Strikesgiving" lunch "in place of the Thanksgiving meal that many of the workers won’t be able to afford later this week," union officials tell the Associated Press.
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Most employees earn between $12.50 and $19 an hour, which is below the living wage for a single person with no children in the Charlotte area.
The AP reported that officials with Service Employees International Union announced the strike in a statement early Monday, saying the workers would demand "an end to poverty wages and respect on the job during the holiday travel season."
Workers tell the AP that they previously mentioned their concerns about their inability to afford needs, including food and housing. They described living paycheck to paycheck, unable to cover expenses like car repairs while performing jobs that keep countless planes running on schedule.
About 800 workers were affected by the union’s push for higher wages, but the exact number who participated in the work stoppage was unclear, union spokesperson Ana Tinsly told the AP.
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According to the AP, employees of ABM and Prospect Airport Services cast ballots Friday to authorize the work stoppage in North Carolina that started Monday morning.
Both companies contract with American Airlines to provide services like cleaning airplane interiors, removing trash and escorting passengers in wheelchairs.
In a statement obtained from American by the AP, the airline said it doesn’t expect "any significant disruption" to its flights this week as a result of the strike.
Over 30 American flights at the Charlotte airport — about 4% of the airline's flights — were delayed at midafternoon Monday, according to FlightAware, which isn’t out of the ordinary.
ABM explained to the AP that it would take steps to minimize disruptions from any demonstrations.
Meanwhile, the Thanksgiving holiday season is expected to be the busiest on record, with a projected 1.02 million passengers leaving the airport between last Thursday and the Monday after Thanksgiving, airport officials tell the AP.