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This discord within the organization comes at a critical time for the union. National officer elections began Nov. 10 and run through Dec. 10, according to its website. |
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The president of the union which represents flight attendants for American Airlines is coming under fire for saying union members haven't been financially impacted by the grounding of the 737 Max.
Lori Bassani, president of the Association of Professional Flight Attendants which represents 28,000 American Airlines Group, Inc. (Nasdaq: AAL) flight attendants, has been asked by a union board member to resign, according to emails obtained by the Dallas Business Journal.
Additionally, more than 2,100 people as of Saturday night have signed an online petition calling for Bassani's resignation.
On Thursday, Bassani told the Business Journal that unlike other aviation employee groups, the APFA will not sue Boeing Co. (NYSE: BA) seeking damages for lost wages. The pilots union at Southwest Airlines has sued Boeing claiming $100 million in lost wages and the Southwest flight attendants union is weighing litigation over the grounding of the 737 Max, CNBC reported.
"It's not our only aircraft, so our people didn't really lose wages," Bassani said Thursday. "Their schedules were changed and they were impacted, but they could always get another flight on another airplane."
John Nikides, president of APFA's Los Angeles International Airport's base, took umbrage with Bassani's comments, and said he had received information that Bassani's husband worked for Boeing. Bassani lives in Washington state.
"Could self-interest be driving your move to deny our members the opportunity to receive damages due to the Max grounding?" Nikides wrote in an email to Bassani, copying other union leader members in the process.
"You're quite a sleuth," Bassani responded. "My husband looks forward to meeting you. He's a machinist."
According to the emails, Nikides had previously asked Bassani to talk with American about obtaining financial damages incurred by flight attendants from the 737 Max grounding.
Nikides linked to a Reuters article which detailed the president of the Allied Pilots Association, which represents American's pilots, saying he expected his pilots to be compensated for their lost wages from the 737 Max grounding through American. Boeing is expected to offer payment to airlines affected by the grounding.After Bassani's Thursday comments became public, Nikides said Bassani should step down.
"I hereby formally request your resignation as APFA president, effective immediately," Nikides wrote in another email to Bassani. "You are clearly in no position to lead this union."
When reached Saturday night, Bassani said if American receives any damages from Boeing, she expects the APFA to share in those reparations. "The APFA Board has expressed an interest in discussing this issue further, which we expect to do next week," she said.
She also confirmed her husband works for Boeing, and pointed out that she called on the 737 Max to be grounded in a television interview just before the plane was ultimately grounded in the U.S.
"Where my husband works has nothing to do with the safety of my members and our passengers, nor had any bearing on my calling for the grounding of the 737 Max," she said.
This discord within the organization comes at a critical time for the union. National officer elections began Nov. 10 and run through Dec. 10, according to its website.
And next month, the contract between the APFA and American becomes amendable. Negotiations between the union and American have been ongoing since February.
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