Unionized ground workers upset over contract negotiations with American Airlines formed a picket line Wednesday at Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport.
The Transport Workers Union said members representing aircraft maintenance, fleet service, facilities and ground support employees were to protest at Terminal D to "shed light on American Airlines' latest plan to outsource many more U.S.-based jobs."
The union told the Dallas Business Journal workers feared that U.S. jobs would be relocated to a new, $100 million maintenance facility in Brazil.
The Fort Worth-based airline issued the following statement to NBC DFW:
"American is incredibly thankful for our skilled and well-trained maintenance and fleet service team. We have a shared goal with the TWU-IAM Association to make sure our team members are well-compensated and work for a company that values them immensely. That was the motivation for last summer's unprecedented pay raises outside of negotiations, which gave our teams the highest wages in the industry. A lot of progress has been made in negotiations recently. We're back at the bargaining table with the Association this week with dates scheduled through August, and we look forward to reaching an agreement as soon as possible."
"TWU members at American Airlines have made countless sacrifices while the company continues to make record profits. We’ve been through bankruptcy, a merger, and stagnating wages," the union's website stated.
Local
The latest news from around North Texas.
The protest was not expected to affect air traffic.
