American Airlines flight attendants on the verge of a strike after talks concluded

The Association of Professional Flight Attendants (APFA), which represents about 28,000 American Airlines flight attendants, announced Thursday that recent negotiations with the airline over a new collective bargaining agreement have failed to produce an agreement, bringing the union ever closer to considering a strike.

However, the flight attendants cannot go on strike without approval from the National Mediation Board (NMB), according to Reuters.

The NMB must first conclude that both parties have reached an impasse and that further negotiations would be futile. This process, known for its complexity and length, is likely to cause problems for airline workers willing to strike.

Last year, the NMB rejected the union’s request to end federal mediation.

After the recent talks failed, the union told its members in an email: “We do not anticipate that further negotiations will be scheduled until the National Mediation Board has decided to grant the parties a 30-day cooling-off period. All American Airlines flight attendants should prepare for an impending strike.”

Flight attendants are pushing for an immediate 33% pay raise, citing the lack of a raise in more than five years. Union officials say flight attendants have faced significant challenges since the pandemic, including dealing with unruly passengers who defied mask mandates on airplanes.

Meanwhile, American Airlines expressed optimism that the NMB would soon begin further negotiations with the APFA, saying that an agreement was “within reach.”

In a statement, the airline highlighted recent progress in talks: “We have made good progress in negotiations this week, expanding on the industry-leading proposal we have had on the table for months.”

“We look forward to further negotiations so that our flight attendants can benefit from the contract they deserve.”

The current round of negotiations between the union and American Airlines began in January 2020 but were paused at the height of the pandemic. Talks resumed in June 2021, but the two parties were unable to reach consensus.

This is not the first time the union has announced that its members will strike. Following a round of negotiations last month, the union urged its members to prepare for a strike in a message dated May 31.

Earlier this month, the airline offered its flight attendants an immediate 17 percent pay increase in their new contract, but the APFA’s offer was later unanimously rejected.