United Airlines Suspends Flight Attendants Who Crashed Business Class Launch, Setting Up Major Union Showdown
- United Airlines has reportedly suspended a group of flight attendants who stormed a glitzy media event in Brooklyn that was being held by the carrier to show off its next-generation Polaris business class suites.
The flight attendants have been ‘removed from service’ pending an internal investigation, but the decision by airline managers has infuriated union leader Sara Nelson, who is often described as ‘the most powerful flight attendant in the United States.’
Why this matters now
- It’s not unusual for airline workers to protest outside an event, but it’s almost unheard of for unions to crash an invite-only party.
- This marks a significant escalation in a long and ongoing dispute between United Airlines and the Association of Flight Attendants (AFA-CWA), which represents tens of thousands of crew members.
- The decision to take disciplinary action against the flight attendants could set up United Airlines for an even bigger clash with the union at a critical time for workers’ rights.
What happened
On Tuesday, United Airlines launched its highly-anticipated next-generation Polaris business class suites that are set to debut on upcoming Boeing 787-9 Dreamliners later this year.
Just before the media event in Brooklyn to show off the seats got underway, a small group of flight attendants crashed the stage, wielding bright yellow placards emblazoned with the words ‘CONTRACT NOW’ while shouting, “If we don’t get it, shut it down.”
The protest was witnessed by a swarm of elite frequent flyers and media attendees who United CEO Scott Kirby had invited to be the first people to see the new Polaris suites.
The protest was caught on camera, and video of the flight attendants being bundled off the stage by security personnel was soon shared on social media.
Watch the protest
The full story
- A spokesperson for the Association of Flight Attendants confirmed that the protestors, all of whom are serving United crew members, had been taking part in a sanctioned union demonstration.
- Trusted aviation insider XJonNYC on Bluesky and X cited sources who claimed the protestors had been removed from service “pending investigations.”
- AFA National President Sara Nelson hit out at the news that the flight attendants had been suspended, saying on X: “This is union activity. Protected activity. Period.”
Behind the scenes
United’s flight attendants have been trying to secure pay raises and other improvements since 2021, when their last contract became amendable. Negotiations have, however, been incredibly slow amidst accusations that United is demanding overreaching concessions.
Ken Diaz, the United AFA President, says: “United has the money to invest in an industry-leading Flight Attendant contract with ‘premium’ compensation, work rules, and cabin interiors.”
What to watch for
- Union negotiators have been meeting with United Airlines for three weeks of intensive back-to-back bargaining in Chicago to secure a tentative agreement.
- The decision to suspend the flight attendant protestors could push the negotiations off course and open a major rift between the two sides.
- The Trump administration could erode the little leverage that the union has to secure the big pay raises that it is seeking for United flight attendants.
Fire every last one and hire new. This kind of nonsense and the general hypocrisy of police unions have completely turned this democrat against the entire concept of collective bargaining. That wasnt “Protected Union Activity”. If it were the union should have used members who worked for a different airline to prevent retaliation from United. “Most Powerful Flight Attendant” ???? How about “Dumbest Sky Waiter”….
You need to grow a brain and show some empathy. It’s jerks like you who make flying a real pain.
Corporate greed needs to end when we have to wait four years to get a contract. When all the union groups have contacts, the Flight Attendants are strung along. This has happened for decades at United Airlines .
Fire 28,000 Flight Attendants and hire new! That’s your response. You are uneducated about what is transpiring here. My colleagues and I are not Sky waiters. If you knew the profession at all you would not be writing this. We deal with a lot of more than giving you a cocktail.
Your rude and ignorant post indicates that you are in a profession where you do not deal with people. You lack knowledge of this situation, you lack empathy, you lack compassion. Please don’t board my aircraft.
Frontier and FedEx pilots don’t have a contract either. There are many others that don’t. The railway labor act is BS and needs to go. Airlines are not railroads. This prevents anyone from going on strike.
Go get your rightful contract flight attendants. Y’all deserve it. And NO CONCESSIONS!!!
not true at all. our union president just released a video and told us they were not punished. at least get your facts straight.
I’m a retired UA flight attendant. I left somewhat early bc I had a bad feeling United wasn’t going to recognize how valuable their inflight crews really are (Can’t fly without them FAA minimum crew requirements) FA’s are the face and advertise the brand- treat them right and they will make the company look very good and be the very best, because it’s in our DNA. The work rules that are in place even now runs the crews ragged. Someone needs to contact Gordon Bethune, he knows how to make an airline number one and how it benefits all parties. BTW what happened to CHAOS? Cause havoc across our system.? I thought we did a vote strike in August?
No. This is not a “major union showdown”.
The’s flight attendants will be fired because they committed a crime, trespassing, in uniform.
Nelson will once again pee down her leg and go through all the p r. and legal machinations, but in the end, the flight attendants will loose their jobs because their bought Nelson’s left wing craziness.
Couldn’t agree more. They trespassed in an area in which they had no permission to be. I gree with them that they should have a pay raise sfter 4 years but these union thug tactics are going to hurt them instead of help them
I feel they have a right to ask for compensation, however I think they could have gone about it in a much better way. To storm a media event like that isn’t a whole lot better than those assholes that stormed the Capitol after Trump lost the election. I’m just glad no one was hurt. I don’t care if you’re “left wing” or “right wing “, acting like an idiot to get your way is just wrong.
If an airline won’t put it’s staff first, I won’t fly with them. After all it’s their staff who have passengers’ lives in their hands. They shouldn’t be treated as inconveniences. Why do Americans worship columns of numbers?