Sara Nelson called for the “End of the Government Shutdown” in 2019. Now, the AFA President is helping the labor movement go further. She has also advocated for female flight attendants about sexism and sexual harassment in the industry.
The government shutdown began on December 22, 2019. Her voice spoke volumes about ending the shutdown involving a budgetary impasse forcing 80,000 federal workers to report to duty without pay for 30 days. As the employees stopped showing up for work, she called for the end of the stalemate and spoke on behalf of pilots, baggage handlers, and other airline employees whose safety was at risk. She proved to be a powerhouse when she demanded that the paychecks started flowing again. Then she threatened a ‘general strike’ to protest the shutdown. Air traffic controllers called in sick and disrupted the flights at LaGuardia Airport. The shutdown ended a few days later.
According to this article in Fast Company, her actions catapulted her to prominence and her ascension in the airline industry couldn’t come at a more daunting time. According to a 2020 Gallup poll, 65% of Americans support labor unions, a two-decade high. Nelson describes in the article that it’s important to talk about issues that affect working people. It convinces people to believe that they’re actually ‘worth more.’
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