Ground workers at Continental Airlines vote to join Teamsters
Ground workers at Continental Airlines voted to unionize and join the Teamsters airline and union officials said on Friday.
The Continental fleet service employees were among the largest groups of nonunion workers in the industry, according to labor officials.
The Teamsters will represent a group that includes baggage handlers and cargo agents in bargaining with Continental over wages and other contract terms. The union already represents mechanics at the airline.
Airlines post best on-time performance since 2003
With fewer seats taking to the skies, airlines reported their best on-time performance last year since 2003.
The nation’s 19 largest airlines said 79.5 [percent] of their flights arrived on time in 2009, compared to 76 [percent] in 2008 and 82 [percent] in 2003, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Bureau of Transportation Statistics, which has been monitoring the data since 1995. Flights are considered on time if they arrive within 15 minutes of schedule.
Flyersrights.org to Unveil its 2009 Real Air Travel Report Card in Washington, DC
Flyersrights.org, a non-profit airline consumer organization, will be releasing its 2009 Real Air Travel Consumer Report Card at a press conference scheduled for February 16. ConsumerTraveler.com will be there.
The report card, issued on the third anniversary of the infamous Valentine’s Day ice storm which left passengers nationwide stranded on airplanes, grades the nation’s airlines on several categories including tarmac delays, water quality and adherence to the contract of carriage. Flyersrights.org also gives some not-so-prestigious awards to several airlines for their roles in various incidents in 2009.
(Photo: caribb/Flickr Creative Commons)
