Southwest flight attendants reject call for pay cuts, urge federal aid

The union representing Southwest flight attendants on Tuesday rejected management's call for negotiated pay cuts to avoid furloughs and renewed calls for more airline aid from Washington. On Monday, Southwest CE Gary Kelly said he was asking unions to agree to pay cuts in order to prevent furloughs and layoffs through 2021 as the industry struggles to stem losses from the coronavirus pandemic. US airlines had pleaded for another $25b in federal payroll support before a ban on job and pay cuts under a first package expired on Sept. 30. Lawmakers have so far failed to agree on a second COVID-19 stimulus plan and some airlines have started furloughing thousands of employees, a move Southwest has so far sought to avoid. But TWU Local 556 President Lyn Montgomery said that before “cracking open the contracts that took us decades to obtain,” the union wants to ensure that no stone has been left unturned, noting that flight attendant concessions may not have a large material impact on Southwest’s daily cash burn. <br/>