Workers in the America Airlines Lounges at Phoenix Sky Harbor airport walked off the job on Wednesday morning over stalled negotiations for a better contract with their employer, Compass Eurest, a subcontractor for the airline.
Dozens of lounge workers, including cooks, dishwashers, bartenders, and servers unionized with Unite Here Local 11, stood outside Terminal 4 in 100-degree weather to demand better wages, pensions, and fair staffing from their employer. While both sides have been in negotiations for months, the strike occurred after talks stalled, according to Victoria Stahl, communications organizer with Unite Here Local 11.
Alejandra Sanchez Lopez, a lounge cook, said she often does the work of multiple people while receiving the pay of just one, and it isn’t enough.
“We are doing the work of four people, even though we’re only two people inside the lounges,” Lopez said. “We don’t have the help for us to do the job that we need to do.”
She added that she has about $10,000 in medical debt that she can’t afford to pay off. As the cost of groceries and gas soar, it’s made it difficult to live comfortably in Phoenix on the hourly rate she earns, she said. One Compass Eurest lounge job posting for a lounge floor attendant lists fixed pay at $17.51 per hour.
Compass Eurest did not immediately return a request for comment.
“We’re fighting [for] better wages to reflect the hard job that we all do inside the lounges,” Lopez said. “Most of the people in there have debt, they have kids, they have rent, some of them are single moms. We needed this for us to be heard.”
Joe Podgorski, a bartender who has been working at the lounge for more than three years, helped gather employees to participate in the strike.
“We’re not asking for the world, we’re asking to get a livable wage and benefits that make sense,” Podgorski said.
Phoenix Sky Harbor is one of American Airlines’ nine major hub cities, operating nearly 250 peak-day departures. It’s unclear how the lounges are continuing operations with a majority of the workforce on strike.
In a statement, an American Airlines spokesperson said the airline does not expect lounge services to be disrupted due to the strike.
“We’re working with our local teams to ensure our customers’ Admirals Club experiences remain as consistent as possible during this period,” the spokesperson said. “We expect minimal impact and are focused on caring for our customers.”
The union said demonstrations will continue until the workers feel ready to return to work. On Thursday, US Reps. Yassamin Ansari (D-Phoenix) and Greg Stanton (D-Tempe) joined the picket line to support the striking workers.
“No one wants to walk off the job,” Podgorski said. “We’d rather be inside taking care of passengers. But we’re standing together because we all deserve a fair wage, affordable healthcare, and the chance to actually retire.”
