Published 30 Dec, 2015
For Immediate Release – December 29, 2015 Download the release
Contact: Patti Adams, (501) 519-2743 or Roger Kerson, (734) 645-0535
Ground Workers to Vote on Tentative Agreement with Southwest Airlines
TWU Local 555 Members Will Have Final Say on Proposed Agreement after More than Four Years of Negotiations
DALLAS – TWU Local 555, the union representing more than 12,000 ground crew workers from Southwest Airlines, announced today that union members will vote on a tentative agreement with the company.
An agreement in principle was reached on Dec. 23, following several weeks of lengthy negotiating sessions. Talks for a new contract began in 2011 and took more than four years. Ramp, operations, provisioning and freight agents at Southwest Airlines have not had a new contract since 2009.
The proposed new contract includes substantial pay raises of more than 20 percent over the life of the agreement for union members in all classifications. If ratified, the contract will remain in force for five years from the date of ratification and will be amendable at that time.
Meeting today in Dallas, the TWU Local 555 Executive Board voted to send the tentative agreement to union members for a ratification vote, without a recommendation.
“After more than four years of negotiations, our members will have the final say on this tentative agreement,” said Local 555 President Greg Puriski. “It’s an important choice for workers and their families and the decision is theirs and theirs alone.” A final copy of the tentative agreement will be mailed to the homes of union members.
TWU Local 555 will have phone banks available to answer question about the agreement. Voting is expected to begin in January, and TWU Local 555 members will have the opportunity to vote by telephone or through a secure online platform.
TWU Local 555 is a local union of the Transport Workers Union of America (TWU), representing more than 12,000 ramp, operations, provisioning and freight agents at Southwest Airlines.