Workers Like Me Keep Airlines Running. Wages and Benefits Should Reflect It

We’ve all seen the headlines about dysfunction in U.S. airports or new data predicting record holiday travel. I work at the airport, and I know the current, chaotic status quo is only going to grow more dire as we head into peak travel season—which is why our members of Congress need to step in and fix it.

As a retired veteran who fought in Desert Storm, I’ve witnessed things I’ll never be able to unsee, and I know what fear feels like. Yet in the U.S. Navy, I felt respected and valued. That’s the opposite of how I feel in my job servicing American Airlines planes.

For nearly two years, I’ve been cleaning American Airlines cabins full-time at Charlotte Douglas International Airport. I clean and inspect numerous planes every shift, making sure they’re sanitized and free of weapons or anything that could pose a danger to passengers or crew members. It’s a huge responsibility and one that I’m proud to take on. But it’s hard to do my job thoroughly when I only have six or seven minutes to get everything done—from wiping down every surface on the plane to hauling hundred-pound trash bags to a trash can that’s sometimes as far as 50 yards away.

My coworkers and I deal with soiled diapers, blood, vomit, and bowel movements every day, sometimes while working in 100-degree heat without air conditioning or water. No one should have to endure these kinds of conditions without proper protections or compensation.

You may not always see us, but whether we clean planes, escort passengers, haul baggage, or work on the tarmac, air travel isn’t possible without us service workers. Yet the combination of low wages, no access to affordable health care, and no paid time off means that many of my coworkers have no choice but to take a higher-paying job if they get the chance. Because of this constant turnover, those of us left often end up having to do the work of multiple people.

The ongoing dysfunction of the air travel system also isn’t working for passengers, who are paying sky-high ticket prices, only to have their flights canceled or delayed and their travel upended. The only people it’s working for are the major carriers making record revenues while the rest of us suffer.

Airlines have been unable to address the ongoing issues, despite receiving substantial public pandemic funding. It’s high time for Congress to reinvest a portion of that funding into our communities by mandating fair wages, affordable health care, and paid time off for airline employees and their contractors.

There is a solution to this travel chaos. The Good Jobs for Good Airports national wage and benefit standards would ensure airport service workers have access to fair wages and benefits, which would change my life and the lives of thousands of my coworkers. Incorporating these guidelines into FAA Reauthorization wouldn’t cost taxpayers a thing and would barely be a drop in the bucket for airlines. For our elected representatives, this should be an obvious and straightforward decision.

This is why I’m joining airport service workers nationwide in advocating for minimum wage and benefit standards for all of us. Congress must ensure that airlines are held responsible during the FAA Reauthorization process. More specifically, our U.S. senators can take action by writing the Good Jobs for Good Airports wage and benefit standards into the final legislation. Senator Ted Budd (R), from my home state of North Carolina, serves on the Commerce Committee, and in this capacity, he can play a pivotal role in ensuring that the bill covers the essential workers who are the cornerstone of our air travel system.

The clock is ticking until the budget expires in December. Fixing our air travel system starts with supporting workers like me. You had better believe we will keep raising our voices and organizing for the respect, protection, and pay we deserve. We aren’t taking no for an answer.

Shawn Montgomery is a retired veteran and cabin cleaner servicing American Airlines at Charlotte Douglas International Airport (CLT), and is part of a national airport service worker movement to raise wage and benefits standards for the largely Black, brown and immigrant workforce.

The views expressed in this article are the writer’s own.