Possible Strikes Could Impact Inflight Catering Operations at 30 airports Across the Mainland U.S. and Hawaii; New online resource, AirportStrikeAlert.org published for passengers to find information about strike activity

NATIONWIDE—Over 8,000 airline catering workers at 30 U.S. airports are preparing to go on strike as soon as Tuesday, July 30. The workers are employees of airline catering subcontractor Gate Gourmet and are members of labor unions UNITE HERE, the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, the Bakery, Confectionary, Tobacco Workers, and Grain Millers Union (BCTGM), and the Retail Wholesale and Department Store Union (RWDSU).

Workers are preparing to strike because they were released from federal mediation with the National Mediation Board on June 29. Their employer, Gate Gourmet, has yet to put forward a proposal offering raises that cover the rising cost of living and an affordable health insurance option.

Airline catering workers prepare, pack, and deliver food and beverages to aircraft departing airports across the country. Their work is essential to the airline industry, requiring skill and precision to prevent flight delays and ensure food safety, but workers struggle with low wages and lack of access to good, affordable health care. Some Gate Gourmet workers were earning as little as $13 per hour as of January 2024. Only 25% of union workers are in Gate Gourmet’s heath care plan and fewer than 2% have signed up for health care for their dependents.

At the same time, US passenger volume is up and airlines are making record profits: $13 billion last year alone for American (NYSE: AAL), Delta (NYSE: DAL), and United (NYSE:UAL) airlines combined. Airlines work closely with catering companies on details from menus to catering facility operations and can ensure quality jobs in a similar way.

To date, despite years of worker protests and more than six years of bargaining, neither Gate Gourmet nor the airlines they serve have shown a commitment to providing the economic increases and affordable healthcare workers need. Workers want Gate Gourmet to put forward a contract proposal that they consider good enough to ratify. If this does not happen, strike activity could begin as soon as 12:01am on Tuesday, July 30, 2024.

In the meantime, protests are ongoing. Picket activity or rallies have already taken place or are scheduled in Chicago, Miami, Newark, and San Francisco.

“Gate Gourmet workers have been fighting for a new union contract for far too long,” said Wendi Walsh, Executive Vice President of UNITE HERE and Secretary-Treasurer of UNITE HERE Local 355 in South Florida. “These workers are barely scraping by on near-poverty wages with lousy, expensive medical benefits, and we’ve spent seven years at the bargaining table trying to get a deal. Meanwhile, profits for the airlines whose planes they’re catering keep going up. Gate Gourmet workers won’t settle for less than they’re worth, they’re getting ready to walk out on strike on or after July 30th to win the wages and health care that they deserve.”

UNITE HERE has published a new website, Airport Strike Alert, to serve as a resource for passengers to track whether inflight service could be impacted on their flights. It will be updated with strike activity real time and is accessible at AirportStrikeAlert.org. Passengers can also sign up for email alerts regarding strike activity.

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UNITE HERE is the hospitality workers’ union, with over 270,000 members across the U.S. and Canada. The Employee Representatives’ Council (ERC) of Gate Gourmet is comprised of UNITE HERE and the International Brotherhood of Teamsters. With the Bakery, Confectionary, Tobacco Workers, and Grain Millers Union (BCTGM), and the Retail Wholesale and Department Store Union (RWDSU), the ERC represents over 8,000 food service workers employed by Gate Gourmet.