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Sea-Tac airport workers call for affordable health care

The following is from SEIU6:

SEATAC (Oct. 3, 2018) — Passenger service workers at Sea-Tac International Airport held a press conference Tuesday to call for quality healthcare coverage. The workers who won the first $15 minimum wage in the nation are coming together to assert that too many of them live close to poverty because of inadequate healthcare coverage. Airport workers jointly announced the worldwide campaign Tuesday in more than 40 airports in 13 countries to put airlines on notice to raise the standards for workers in every country.

“When I hurt my shoulder in March, I didn’t know what to do without insurance,” said Sea-Tac passenger services worker Farah Amin. “I just waited and hoped it would get better, but I still feel my injury today. All of us workers take care of the airport, but we need to take care of our health, too. Then we’ll be more equal, and we can focus on the big picture of how we work together. We need good healthcare not just for ourselves, but for our employers, for the passengers, for the port.”

At Sea-Tac Airport, passenger service workers including baggage handlers, wheelchair agents, and cabin cleaners are calling attention to expensive, inadequate health plans. A recent survey conducted by SEIU shows that 41 percent of passenger service workers have no health insurance, and 73 percent do not have enough in savings to cover a $400 emergency medical expense.

“Two years ago when I had thyroid surgery, I paid everything out of pocket. It cost well over $2,000,” says Abeba Zemou, a passenger services worker with Huntleigh at Sea-Tac. “With other bills and expenses, it took me one year of monthly payments to finally pay down my medical debt from the surgery. I need healthcare coverage, so I can be treated without worrying about sinking deeper into medical debt.”

Congressman Adam Smith (D-9th) expressed his support for Sea-Tac workers’ campaign for affordable health care.

“As the son of a baggage handler at Sea-Tac airport, I saw the economic opportunity my father’s union job created for my family,” smith said. “In response to stagnating wages and consolidation of wealth, our region made history in 2013 by passing the first-in-the-nation $15 minimum wage. We know that our work is not done. Working families should not have to choose between buying groceries and paying for medication. True equality of opportunity and economic stability can only be achieved when living wages go hand in hand with access to affordable health care to help families thrive.”

The fight kicks off as airport workers around the world are inspired by the New York Port Authority’s vote on Sept. 27 to raise the minimum wage for 40,000 workers at JFK, La Guardia, and Newark airports to $19 — which will be the highest minimum wage in U.S. history, once approved.

Through the International Transport Workers’ Federation and the UNI Global Union, airport workers are conducting protests at airports that control a whopping 36 percent of world air travel, where nearly 4 million people pass through each day. This includes some of the world’s largest airports — including LAX in the U.S., Charles De Gaulle in Paris, Schipol in Amsterdam, and Flughafen in Frankfurt.

In the U.S., nearly half of all airport workers are paid so little that they have to skip meals or go hungry. A recent report found that nearly 30 percent of airport workers are forced to rely on public assistance for basic needs like food, housing, and medical care. In Thailand, some airport workers are paid just $10 a day, which is half of the living wage for that country. Airport workers in Indonesia are only paid $1.50 an hour — far below what it takes to cover basic necessities.

“In city after city all across the country, airport workers have won raises — doubling their income in some cities — and the right to form a union,” says Mary Kay Henry, President of Service Employees International Union (SEIU). “They’ve done it by coming together to elect leaders who work for all of us, no matter our skin color or zip code, and calling on those elected officials to hold greedy corporations accountable. We won’t stop until all working people—white, black and brown—can join together in unions for the power in numbers to win higher wages, affordable healthcare and a better life for their families.”

Contracted airport workers around the country are coming together in Airport Workers United, a movement of employees and their supporters raising their voices for fair wages and union rights to make our airports safe and secure for passengers, employees and our communities. By sticking together, speaking out, and going on strike 25,000 workers have joined SEIU and 120,000 have won raises or other improvements, including healthcare, paid sick leave, and job protections.

SEIU6 Property Services NW is part of the largest union in the country, Service Employees International Union, which represents over 2 million service workers in North America. SEIU6 represents more than 6,500 janitors, security officers, and allied industries workers in Washington State.

CHECK OUT THE UNION DIFFERENCE in Washington: higher wages, affordable health and dental care, job and retirement security.

FIND OUT HOW TO JOIN TOGETHER with your co-workers to negotiate for better wages, benefits, and a voice at work. Or go ahead and contact a union organizer today!