Dozens of flight attendants picket outside Austin airport
AUSTIN, Texas - Thousands of flight attendants picketed at 30 airports across the country to demand better pay and working conditions. This included over a dozen flight attendants who protested outside Austin Bergstrom International Airport.
On Tuesday morning, ABIA seemed like business as usual at the drop-off level, but a protest was clearly evident at the arrivals level.
Dozens of flight attendants from several different airlines were planted outside their place of work to protest.
"We're here to demand respect for the value of our profession. Demand that management get serious about negotiating a fair contract with flight attendants," said Kira Silvera, American Airlines flight attendant.
Silvera was one of the flight attendants to join the picket line.
"We have flight attendants here from Alaska, United, Southwest, and, like I said, I'm American [Airlines]," she said.
Over a dozen flight attendants picketed outside Austin-Bergstrom International Airport
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She says she has been a flight attendant for a decade and says the work expected of a flight attendant just does not align with the pay.
"Flight attendants are first responders in the air. We are there primarily for the safety and security of our passengers. I love my job, but we are not aligned on a balance sheet," said Silvera.
This was part of a worldwide day of action as flight attendants from across the country picketed outside 30 different airports all asking for the same thing.
"It makes me feel like we're not alone. That we're here together, trying to bring awareness to what we're dealing with or what we're going through. We need to be able to feed our families, and we just don't have that right now. A lot of us are operating on contracts that are five years old," said Silvera.
If a change is not made, these flight attendants say they do not plan to give up.
"Right now, we're picketing just to bring awareness, so people understand the value of our profession, but we are ready to strike," said Silvera.