CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Employees at the Charlotte Douglas International Airport are protesting for higher wages and better working conditions Thursday.
The workers clustered outside, carrying signs, are airport staff who clean planes, maintain airport facilities and other jobs on the ground.
The protesters have been gathered since 5:30 a.m., and they plan to picket for a full 24 hours. They said they have reached a breaking point when it comes to fair wages and respect.
While many of these jobs are not employed by the major airlines, they are contracted to service airlines, such as American Airlines. Employees who spoke with Spectrum News 1 said some of the workers are making $14 with few if any benefits.
Protester Priscilla Hoyle works on airplane cabins and said she works two jobs to make ends meet.
“Working both jobs is even more difficult because I barely get to spend time with my children with the fact that I have to work two [jobs] to be able to provide for my family. I only get paid $16 an hour, and I believe we all deserve better, we all deserve more," Hoyle said.
A rally is set to be held at 1:30 p.m. Thursday as the protest continues.
ABM, one of the companies responsible for servicing the airlines, issued a statement on Thursday's protest saying:
"ABM cares greatly about the wellbeing of its team members. In April, we began the process of transitioning responsibilities for aircraft cabin cleaning as well as the janitorial cleaning of other areas at Charlotte Douglas International Airport from the incumbent provider. We assumed full management of these services this past week. Over the past two months we have worked quickly to transition the incumbent provider’s employees to ABM, familiarizing them with our company, culture, and team member experience. We are aware of today’s demonstration and have taken steps to minimize any potential service disruption."
There were also flight attendant protests last winter, which were also over higher pay and better conditions.