Group of aircraft fuelers continue display of solidarity with contract ratification
Just one week after a unanimous strike vote at Swissport, the group of 150 aircraft fuelers working at SeaTac Airport continued that solidarity yesterday as they came together to ratify a new contract. The Agreement resolves many of the issues identified prior to bargaining, while paving a concrete path towards a stronger future in this industry. The ratified contract averts a strike that would have all but shut down air travel through the busy SeaTac hub.
The contract will significantly improve the quality of life for workers in this grueling job. It places a new and meaningful focus on safety regulations, addresses the issue of worker parking, addresses favoritism issues in scheduling, and finally resolves problems surrounding workers’ basic needs by making sure they are provided with drinking water, lockers, break rooms, and laundry machines for fuel-contaminated uniforms. In their totality, the contract language improvements make clear that Swissport is willing to commit to improving working conditions and the relationship between the workforce and management.
The contract also shines a bright light on one of the largest problems impacting workers at SeaTac Airport: nonunion competition. The Agreement tackles this problem head-on with a unique and creative solution, which is to allow wages to be renegotiated in the event competitors organize with the Teamsters. This unorthodox approach motivates workers to participate in a race to the top rather than a race to the bottom, and could serve as a model for other contracts in similarly challenging industries.
“This contract negotiation came about as close to a strike as possible without workers actually walking off the job, but in the end, solidarity won the day,” said Teamsters Local 174 Secretary-Treasurer Rick Hicks. “We appreciate the complete change in demeanor on the Swissport side of the table after receiving the unanimous strike vote, and the resulting contract is one that puts working conditions and respect front and center for this group. We look forward to seeing what everyone is able to accomplish in the three years of this contract term, and we know that the future is bright for this extremely diverse group of workers if they maintain the solidarity they built throughout this process.”
Founded in 1909, Teamsters Local 174 represents 8,400 working men and women in the Seattle area. “Like” us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/TeamstersLocal174.