Logan workers strike for better conditions—again
Dozens rallied to raise awareness of the low wages and benefits they say their employer won’t raise.
Travelers arriving at Logan Airport on Wednesday were greeted by the sight of airport workers donned in sandwich boards that read, “On Strike.’’
These non-union employees make up the “invisible work force,’’ as Eugenio Villasante, of the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) that helped organize the protest, described them. They handle your bags and clean the plane before you board, but they are living in poverty.
“They’ve tried to raise their voices to form a union and to get out of poverty, and their efforts have always been meet with aggressive tactics,’’ Villasante said. “Today, they decided it was time to go on strike and tell their employer G2 to stop breaking the law.’’
G2 Secure Staff is a contractor that manages flight services that were previously handled by the airlines. The strike includes formal complaints against G2, ReadyJet Flight Support and two other contractors. G2 did not respond to requests seeking comment.
Since this switch in control, Villasante said, the wages and benefits for workers have been dropping for years. This struggle caught the attention of Boston City Councillor Tito Jackson.
“So many of us are in a rush, and these are the people who are moving our bags, often times serving our food, and making it possible for us to travel,’’ said Jackson, who was in attendance at the rally. “When they’re not there is when we miss them.’’
Last year, Massport raised these workers’s wages from $8 to $10 an hour, but Villasante said while that is an improvement, “it’s no where near what workers need to survive in a city like Boston.’’
Kheila Cox, a G2 employee who was at the protest, knows that struggle to survive first hand. For the 38-year-old mother, it’s critical to get a living wage.
“I have a daughter that’s going to Lesley [University] in the fall, and I almost passed out when she told me what it’s going to cost,’’ Cox said. “It’s good news and bad news. I’m just trying to do this for my kids and it’s not easy.’’
Cox currently works two jobs, but it’s still not enough. She said she endured the heat on Wednesday to protest because she loves working at the airport, but doesn’t think they’re treating their employees fairly.
“G2 has been terrorizing its workers,’’ she said.
This is the second strike by airport employees. The first was in June, and Cox said that G2 officials sent out a notice making people think that action was illegal. When people saw their coworkers go on strike, they thought they would be fired, she said.
“I said, ‘No, this is protected under the law,’’’ said Cox. “And there’s so many more out here today, which makes me so happy.’’
She said it looked like more than a hundred people came out to be involved.
Jackson was excited by the turnout, as well.
“I am encouraged by the individuals who turned up here,’’ he said. “I am frustrated and angered that they have to be here.’’
Jackson also noted that this doesn’t just affect these workers, but the entire community.
“They enable the Massachusetts economy, which is fueled in the city of Boston—the fourth largest bucket we get our dollars from is from travel and tourism,’’ he said. “We should not have companies in the city of Boston that are violating the rights of works who make the least.’’
Jennifer Mehigan, a spokeswoman for Massport, said there was no disruption of service at Logan Airport. Several of the service operators had extra staffing in place, she said, because they knew the strike was going to take place.
What Logan Airport used to look like
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