The board of directors for the American Airlines flight attendants union voted no confidence in the airline's CEO, Robert Isom, saying Monday the company is lagging behind competition.
The Association of Professional Flight Attendants demanded leadership change at the Fort Worth-based airline, better operational support and accountability.
"From abysmal profits earned to operational failures that have front-line Workers sleeping on floors, this airline must course-correct before it falls even further behind," Julie Hedrick, president of the union, said in a press release. "This level of failure begins at the very top, with CEO Robert Isom."
Fort Worth-based American's financial losses mounted after the pandemic, causing the Airline to fall behind competitors like United, Delta and Southwest Airlines, the union said. Despite this, union leaders said, Isom has received increases in compensation and benefits.
The no-confidence vote comes after an arctic weather storm rocked American's operations, resulting in thousands of canceled flights and stranded flight attendants.
"When the recent winter storm hamstrung our operations to the point where Flight Attendants were sleeping on airport floors, Robert Isom’s response was that it was just ‘part of our job,'" Hedrick said. "His tone-deaf leadership shows a complete disregard for the human element and is actively harming both American Airlines and the people who keep it running every day."
The Allied Pilots Association, which represents American's pilots, also raised concerns about the airline's performance last week.
"This assessment is not the result of a single interaction with management, an isolated operational disruption, or an individual earnings report," the association said in a press release. "It is the result of persistent patterns of operational, cultural, and strategic shortcomings."
Dylan Duke is KERA's Breaking News Reporter. Got a tip? Email Dylan Duke at dduke@kera.org.
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