American Airlines To Recall Thousands Of Furloughed Workers After Relief Package Passes

As a result of the new COVID-19 relief package, American Airlines will be able to recall 19,000 furloughed workers including nearly 200 maintenance workers in Tulsa.

“The Association leadership, TWU and IAM membership, and our legislative teams have been working tirelessly with other AFL-CIO unions since last May to secure additional relief for our Association members as well as our respective other air and rail members,” said TWU International Executive Vice President Alex Garcia and IAM General Vice President Sito Pantoja. “Thousands of TWU and IAM member emails, phone calls, and other meetings with Senators and House members across the country made sure the transportation industry and our Association members were not forgotten in this round of economic relief.”

The recalls are a condition of the airline receiving federal aid earlier this year. The funding will secure employees' positions through at least March.

“This is particularly impactful, in a positive way, for our furloughed Association members. Included in the new relief is the requirement that furloughed employees be restored to on payroll status retroactive to December 1st. We wish this could have been completed before any airline workers were furloughed, but the current dysfunctional Congress made that impossible,” said Garcia and Pantoja. “The Association, TWU and IAM will continue to lead the way among organized labor when the new Congress begins work, advocating that they continue taking steps to help working families and our entire country recover from COVID’s wake of destruction.”

The bill goes to President Donald Trump for his signature, which is expected in the coming days.