US: Airlines absent from Senate COVID-19 relief proposal, unions plan action

A fresh US Senate Republican coronavirus spending package introduced on Tuesday does not include new government assistance for US airlines or airports, a text of the proposal showed, as the sector races to save jobs before October. More than 35,000 workers at two of the largest US carriers alone - American and United - are set to lose their jobs once an initial $25b in payroll support from the government expires this month. That has fueled a furious push by unions for a six-month extension of the aid, with flight attendants and other aviation workers planning to march outside the US Capitol on Wednesday. Last month a group of Senate Republicans backed extending $25b in payroll assistance for airlines, an idea Democrats also support. That proposal was excluded from the latest Senate measure, but it is an opening salvo for talks that are expected to intensify once the U.S. House returns from recess next week. The Senate proposal also excludes $10b in assistance for airports that was part of an earlier Senate bill.<br/>