An amendment introduced by Republican Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky to strike Flight Attendant health and safety protections from the Senate FAA reauthorization bill was defeated yesterday. Your phone calls helped to bring this issue to the attention of the members of the U.S. Senate—another example of why AFA-CWA is known on Capitol Hill for our effective grassroots advocacy. Thank you for taking the time to call your Senators and register your opinion on issues that affect our profession.
During yesterday’s debate, it appeared that Senator Paul was unfamiliar with the provisions he was trying to strip from the bill. The section in question would have required the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) to continue their work on the 2000 Memorandum of Understanding (MOU). The MOU is designed to provide health and safety protections in the aircraft cabin and addresses issues such as sanitation, hazardous materials, noise and blood borne pathogens. During the short Senate floor debate, Senator Paul claimed his amendment was necessary to keep OSHA out of the cockpit (the MOU is specific to the aircraft cabin only).
The Senate vote to take the Paul amendment off the table was a 52-47 party-line vote with all Democrats and Independents who voted, supporting Flight Attendant health and safety, and all Republicans voting against. Let’s be clear: This vote was only on whether or not OSHA protections should be extended to Flight Attendants, nothing more.
To see how your Senator voted, go to the following link: http://alturl.com/jmu58
If your Senator is among those who supported the Flight Attendant profession in this vote, please take a moment to place one more call to thank her/him. To find your Senator’s contact information, enter your zip code here .
After defeating the Paul Amendment, the Senate passed a final FAA reauthorization bill, 87-8, which now includes health and safety protections for Flight Attendants. Once the House of Representatives passes a version of the FAA bill, the two bills will be reconciled in conference.
AFA’s press release on this latest legislative success is posted on our website . Click here to read the press release>>
Thank you for your participation.