Flight attendants at Denver-based low-cost carrier Frontier Airlines have set a November 12 deadline for the airline to start negotiating over its decision to transition to a ‘turn only’ business model in which crew members start and finish each working day at their assigned base.
The turn-only model has, according to the Association of Flight Attendants (AFA-CWA), resulted in wages plummeting by more than 20%, with flight attendants incurring additional expenses commuting to and from the airport or staying in hotels.
Last month, flight attendants voted overwhelmingly to strike if the airline does not address the issue as part of a special clause in the Railway Labor Act that allows unions to reopen contract talks outside of regular negotiations.
The union filed for federal mediation over the issue earlier this year, but the National Mediation Board has yet to accept the request, so the strike authorization vote is little more than academic at this point.
On Friday, however, the AFA-CWA International President, Sara Nelson, sent a letter to Frontier CEO Barry Biffle, demanding that the airline start negotiating over the impact of the turn-only model.
“Frontier flight attendants have been suffering for months from the business model change and have every right to negotiate over that impact now,” Nelson wrote. “The urgency of this matter is undeniable. Our members at Frontier have voted overwhelmingly to authorize a lawful strike demonstrating the very serious nature of this dispute.”
“Accordingly, this is to request that Frontier provides an available date to meet, by not later than November 12, 2024, regarding the impact of Frontier’s change in its business model. It is Frontier’s obligation to make every reasonable effort to make and maintain agreements and to settle the dispute,” the letter continued.
“If it continues to refuse to do so on this issue, and superficially if we do not get meeting dates on the books by November 12, AFA will have no choice but to exercise its lawful rights under the Railway Labor Act.”
Chief executive Barry Biffle introduced the turn-only model earlier this year in an attempt to dramatically slash costs by saving money on pilots and flight attendants staying in hotels in destinations across the airline’s network.
Frontier also says the turn-only model will help the airline better react to irregular operations, such as bad weather, which caused chaos for Southwest Airlines in December 2022.
However, flight attendants complain that a large portion of their wages are made up of overnight per diems, which they are now losing out on as a result of the turn-only model. Many of Frontier’s flight attendants also commute to their home base from further afield so they are spending their own money on hotels between flights.
Last month, Frontier Airlines accused the union of ‘fueling fear’ at the expense of the flying public, as it knows that negotiations are nowhere near a point where a strike can legally occur.
The airline said in a statement at the time, “Frontier Airlines is fully committed to maintaining a positive and collaborative relationship with our flight attendants and to negotiating a fair contract.”
Earlier this month, Frontier’s pilots also voted overwhelmingly in favor of strike action over stalled contract negotiations, with 99% of pilots who took part in the poll approving a potential walkout.
