Labor's win at PHL is win for Democrats this November

Labor’s recent win at Philadelphia International Airport could be a win for the Democrats come November.

“Without you guys, we don’t have no voice,” said Shakira Stewart, a McGinn Securities employee who has worked at PHL for the past two years.

Speaking at City Hall Wednesday, Stewart said she and the approximately 1,000 other subcontracted airport workers decided to call off plans to strike during the Democratic National Convention because more powerful players came to the table.

Issued ahead of the DNC, the strike threat was intended to draw attention to the workers’ “Fight for $15” and claims the subcontractors were taking action against them for their attempts to unionize.

Late Friday, the Philadelphia Mayor’s Office issued a statement saying Mayor Jim Kenney and Gov. Tom Wolf – both Democrats – and American Airlines, which has a hub at PHL, will be at the table with the employees and airline vendors as the workers “form a union of their choosing.” The agreement does not guarantee a $15 payrate.

“American Airlines has committed to ensuring that subcontracted workers have a fair process to form their union,” said Gabe Morgan of 32BJ SEIU, which has helped workers’ demonstration efforts.

“Beginning today and into next week, [32BJ SEIU] and American will be working together on such an agreement and to ensure the smooth operation of the Airport as thousands of delegates from around the country convene for the Democratic National Convention,” Kenney said Friday.

“The powerful elected officials did what they were supposed to do for us,” Stewart added on Wednesday.

Both Kenney and Wolf have backed the workers’ fight in the past, but only recently did their support shift from words to action. American Airlines’ involvement is a more dramatic change. The airline, which handles more than 70 percent of the flights at PHL, has mostly stayed out of the battle between vendors and their workers – at least publicly – except to say it has no issues with unionization. Many of American’s own employees are unionized.

The new agreement, Stewart said, reinforced her commitment to supporting the Democratic party – a message she shares with her colleagues.

“If it wasn’t for you guys, we wouldn’t have a fight here at all,” she told a roomful of DNC attendees. “I wasn’t that active in politics until this fight for our rights. Once I learned more, I actually learned you are for us, not against us.”

"When you look at the Republicans, they are not about us," she said, referring to low-wage workers.

Stewart said she couldn’t say which candidate her coworkers would vote for this November, but one this is for sure: “I know everyone is registered to vote.”

Source: Philadelphia Business Journal