Delta Air Lines Flight Attendants to Vote

Delta Air Lines flight attendants are set to vote on if they will join the union that is representing the pre-merger for Northwest Airlines staff. This comes after the National Mediation Board, the federal board overseeing labor issues at airlines across the nation, gave the go-ahead for the ballot.

The voting will decide if the 13,000 stewards and stewardesses that work for Delta Air Lines will be unionized. Staff will be able to cast their vote online or by phone, which will be the first conducted with the new procedures, which are believed to be more favorable for unions. The election will last for 5 weeks, starting on September 29 and ending on November 3.

If the Association of Flight Attendants loses, the union and their over 7,000 Northwest Airlines flight attendants won’t be covered anymore. Union spokesman John Cornelius said that this is tough, as Delta Air Lines doesn’t want this. The airline is pushing for workers to vote against this, he added.

However, Delta spokeswoman Gina Laughlin says that they are simply putting out information to the flight attendants to make sure they have the facts and know their options. They respect whatever they decide, she added.

Flight attendants at Delta Air Lines have voted against being unionized in the past. However, new election rules may change this, as all that’s needed now is a majority vote. A date for the over 30,000 cargo and baggage handlers and passenger agents to vote hasn’t been set yet. That vote will decide if non-union workers will join the International Association of Machinists, which is already the representative of Northwest’s staff in those positions.