Today, United Airlines unveiled its new Polaris business class, including the new Polaris Studio, which will be installed on newly delivered Boeing 787-9s. The airline held a flashy media event in Brooklyn to formally unveil these improvements, and apparently it was memorable on a variety of levels.
In this post:
United employees accused of trespassing Polaris event
An OMAAT reader attending United’s new Polaris launch event today (who asked to remain anonymous) shared an interesting video with me of what happened before United executives got on stage to give their speeches. While he asked me not to post it, below is another (shorter) version of what I saw.
Shortly before United executives got on stage to speak, roughly a dozen United flight attendants in uniform walked right in front of the stage with large signs, loudly screaming phrases like:
- “If we don’t get it, shut it down”
- “What do we want? A contract. When do we want it? Now!”
This lasted for maybe a minute (I saw a longer version than the above), but security then stepped in and ushered them out to leave, with one person even being heard accusing them of trespassing. It’s not clear how exactly they managed to enter Brooklyn Navy Yard, the facility where the event was being held.
While it’s normal for employees to picket outside of an event, actually entering an event and doing it in this way is something that’s a bit more unusual. United flight attendants have been without a new contract for nearly four years, as their current contract became amendable around the middle of 2021.
Separately, the Association of Flight Attendants-CWA, which represents United’s 28,000 flight attendants, put out a statement about United’s new cabins. AFA International President Sara Nelson and United AFA President Ken Diaz issued the following statement:
“Service doesn’t happen without us. United has the money to invest in an industry-leading Flight Attendant contract with ‘premium’ compensation, work rules, and cabin interiors.”
“CEO Scott Kirby can roll out all the new product announcements he wants — it means nothing without respect for the people who deliver it. New cabin interiors – if done with our involvement – can be helpful for doing our jobs and we want happy passengers. But a new aircraft cabin doesn’t pay rent, allow us to come to work without stress over paying our bills, attract new applicants, or give us the schedule control we need to have a life. Scott Kirby can’t promise a product without the people who deliver it.”
“No other Flight Attendant contract across the industry in this round of bargaining included concessions. Not one. Today’s announcement adds insult to injury. Scott Kirby has no business demanding concessions while stuffing his own pockets with gold and beating his chest about United being the best. Right now, he’s just beating competitors by failing to pay us – the people who make United fly.”
“If Kirby wants to reach true #1 status, it starts with delivering the #1 contract for 28,000 Flight Attendants today.”
United flight attendants deserve and need a new contract
I know the topic of unions can be polarizing, but I’d hope that we can all agree that United flight attendants deserve significant pay raises. The cost of living has increased massively in the years since the start of the pandemic, yet their pay has stayed the same.
For example, United flight attendants pay starts at $28.88 per hour. That might not sound bad, but that’s because flight attendants don’t get paid for 40 hours per week of work. Instead, flight attendants are only paid when they fly, and typically fly somewhere around 1,000 hours per year, maybe a little more.
That’s all while being based in some of the world’s most expensive cities. Starting United flight attendants are paid less than Emirates flight attendants, not even accounting for Emirates flight attendants having their housing and transportation paid for.
We’ve seen many other airlines ratify new contracts, with huge raises, boarding pay, and other improvements in provisions. For example, below is American’s new flight attendant pay scale, not even accounting for them now getting boarding pay.
Yet for years, United management and the union haven’t been able to come to an agreement. We’ve heard over and over how the two sides are too far apart, but does anyone actually know what’s going on here?
I know both sides like to play hardball, though in the end, they’ll likely end up with comparable pay to American flight attendants, who were the latest to ratify a contract. After all, that’s how pattern bargaining works, and that’s basically what we saw with the last round of pilot contract negotiations at the “big three.”
What I don’t understand is which side has truly been stalling these negotiations. Like, which side isn’t willing to agree to something comparable to what American flight attendants ratified?
We of course know that United has been on the rise in the past couple of years, and the carrier’s stock has performed incredibly well. United is increasingly in Delta’s financial league, rather than American’s. However, there’s no denying that the lack of flight attendants getting a contract ratified is boosting profits by at least a billion dollars per year, or so, and that’s at least part of the story of United’s financial improvement.
So is management dragging its feet to keep that going for as long as possible so that executives can keep cashing in, or what’s the real story here?
Bottom line
United had more visitors than expected at its Polaris launch event today, as roughly a dozen flight attendants in uniform showed up with signs, and crashed the area in front of the stage, chanting and yelling for a new contract. They ended up being escorted out, and were even accused of trespassing.
I have huge respect for what Kirby has done at United to improve the carrier. But c’mon, now is the time to finally give the flight attendants the contract that they deserve.
The union will ruin it for customers for sure.. Do they really needs unions and dues to support union leaders and politicians -(DNC)
I take 75-100 flights a year. 60% of fa do not appreciate their job.
Delta’s younger fa’s are terrible. They need to really look at the hiring process or training. 3 years ago I would say that delta’s fa were the best. Something went wrong somewhere.
Completely sympathize with junior FAs - they are underpaid and should be paid more.
On the other hand, I don't quite understand why senior FAs deserve pay that is orders of magnitude higher. Do senior FAs have to get extra certifications or training? Are there tasks only they are qualified to do? I.e. What does an airline get from senior FAs that they don't get from junior FAs?
Nicely put
And the orders of magnitude reach the ultimate ridiculous level with the CEO in this country as well ...
"Service doesn't happen without us!"
Well, from my experience, service doesn't really happen with you either, so no big change.
And they DO NOT have to,” live in those expensive cities”. Ever heard of commuting? Many do. And if not, since they don’t work a 5 day work week, maybe live outside of those expensive cities and commute by train or drive. While working for a major carrier, my wife commuted while I worked a5 day week for the same carrier.
When I lived in Thailand after retirement, there were flight attendants who commuted to Tokyo for trips.
The housing crisis has reached a point where even bedroom communities are extremely expensive
All of them should be suspended.
If Trump had his way. You realise that people have the right to non violent protest. So you would suspend employees rather than ensure they had upto date salaries and contracts ? This is such an American /Republican attitude.
The people advocating for higher pay must not travel on US airlines much. Highest paid flight attendants on average and below average service. Nothing about the flight attendant unions is customer friendly.
United flight attendants "never retire" (many are in their 70s & 80s), and thousands upon thousands show up to recruiting events where only a few hundred are hired.
Econ 101: supply vs. demand.
If the contract is that underwhelming, then why is there continuously such an overwhelming supply of applicants & 45+ year veterans? And does anyone really want geriatrics leading an evacuation? AFA needs to step in and set a maximum age...
United flight attendants "never retire" (many are in their 70s & 80s), and thousands upon thousands show up to recruiting events where only a few hundred are hired.
Econ 101: supply vs. demand.
If the contract is that underwhelming, then why is there continuously such an overwhelming supply of applicants & 45+ year veterans? And does anyone really want geriatrics leading an evacuation? AFA needs to step in and set a maximum age limit or else they'll forever remain under the thumb of basic economics.
Fire all the whining brats, most of them are so old they will be gone soon anyways
Sky waitresses can get another job if they don’t like that one. Also fire those immediately that demonstrated at a company event. So stupid and pathetic
Correct answer. If unions disbanded and all of the seniority scheme bullsh1t went away, companies would be able to compete for best candidates - and to get COMPETITIVE pay, you need COMPETITION. Or just union nonsense I suppose…
Once you get to the top year of seniority, you only get raises provided by a contract. So, if a UA F/A has been flying 13 years or more, the last increase in hourly pay was in 2021. Four years is a long time with no contract.
I assume that the Union has been asking the mediator to be released into the 30-day cooling-off period. One would think that it won't be too long, before the parties are released. Then, the pressure will be on management.
Flight attendants do not get a raise each year. Once you hit 13 years, the raises stop. They’ve gone without a raise for 4 years. Kirby just received an increase to $33 million a year while flight attendants sleep in their cars, rely on leftover airplane food to eat during flight and are ruining their credit scores because they can’t afford to survive and must rely on credit cards to buy groceries. I have heard...
Flight attendants do not get a raise each year. Once you hit 13 years, the raises stop. They’ve gone without a raise for 4 years. Kirby just received an increase to $33 million a year while flight attendants sleep in their cars, rely on leftover airplane food to eat during flight and are ruining their credit scores because they can’t afford to survive and must rely on credit cards to buy groceries. I have heard of many suicides by flight attendants because this is too much to deal with. Kirby has their blood on his hands. Shame on United!
Looks like Scott Kirby is having a tough month! LMAO most of these issues could have been avoided but now he will definitely be making United CEO history with his decisions or lack of them I should say.
Maybe he should spend less time suckholing to the Mad Orange God-King and his courtiers, and more time fixing the problems at United.
I’m tired of these whiny ass flight attendants complaining about money. They get some of the best benefits on this planet. They work a few days a month, they don’t pay for any air travel. And as far as United is concerned, they are just as lazy as Americans FAs…They do one round of service and sit and play their games on their iPhones. There is not one European service carrier that ever pulls this...
I’m tired of these whiny ass flight attendants complaining about money. They get some of the best benefits on this planet. They work a few days a month, they don’t pay for any air travel. And as far as United is concerned, they are just as lazy as Americans FAs…They do one round of service and sit and play their games on their iPhones. There is not one European service carrier that ever pulls this nonsense but US flight attendant do… if you don’t like the job find another..
This is exactly the kind of ignorant and outdated thinking that disrespects an entire profession. Most flight attendants today are not coasting on luxury. They are working through inflation, delayed pay raises, and long duty days where they are expected to handle everything from medical emergencies to violent passengers, all while staying calm and professional.
We do not fly for free. We fly standby and are often sleeping in airports or crash pads between exhausting...
This is exactly the kind of ignorant and outdated thinking that disrespects an entire profession. Most flight attendants today are not coasting on luxury. They are working through inflation, delayed pay raises, and long duty days where they are expected to handle everything from medical emergencies to violent passengers, all while staying calm and professional.
We do not fly for free. We fly standby and are often sleeping in airports or crash pads between exhausting trips just to make ends meet. Many of us fly multiple trips in a row with minimum rest just to survive. This is not about perks. It is about staying afloat.
And while you accuse U.S. flight attendants of being lazy, you clearly forget we are trained to handle midair emergencies. That includes fires, decompressions, threats, and full aircraft evacuations. When was the last time your job required you to be able to save 200 lives in 90 seconds?
If you do not understand the job, that is fine. But do not pretend your opinion is fact just because you are loud.
While SOME of the top top top flight attendants *could* work only a few days a month, many, neé, most flight attendants have to work 20-25 days a month. In many cases, this still doesn’t cover basic living expenses in cities like New York, Los Angeles, DC, and San Francisco. MANY qualify for food stamps.
Also, little known fact, United flight attendants have to PAY to fully use their benefits. This is very different...
While SOME of the top top top flight attendants *could* work only a few days a month, many, neé, most flight attendants have to work 20-25 days a month. In many cases, this still doesn’t cover basic living expenses in cities like New York, Los Angeles, DC, and San Francisco. MANY qualify for food stamps.
Also, little known fact, United flight attendants have to PAY to fully use their benefits. This is very different from Delta where they only have to pay taxes if they fly Delta One.
Why don't you see if you can get a job at Emirates? I heard they're hiring. And the pay and benefits are GREAT. Tim Clark doesn't make that much either lmao.
Not only are UA’s 28K FAs working under an amendable contract, so too are UA’s almost 10k mechanics. They got a contract proposal from their union and voted it down nearly unanimously. They also felt it was concessionary including allowing more outsourcing, something they are not even beginning to entertain.
Four more work groups have amendable contracts within weeks so 65,000 non-pilot unionized United workers will be looking for pay raises in the next...
Not only are UA’s 28K FAs working under an amendable contract, so too are UA’s almost 10k mechanics. They got a contract proposal from their union and voted it down nearly unanimously. They also felt it was concessionary including allowing more outsourcing, something they are not even beginning to entertain.
Four more work groups have amendable contracts within weeks so 65,000 non-pilot unionized United workers will be looking for pay raises in the next few months – or else express their displeasure.
As much as some will be convinced otherwise, 2024 might have been the closest UA will come to DL’s level of profits. A billion dollars more in labor costs is nothing to sneeze at.
UA should not underestimate the damage that AA FAs did to AA’s reputation over their delayed contract.
btw, who is to say that the union didn't hire people to stage the protest, providing them w/ UA uniforms?
you're so obsessed with United beating Delta on profitability...?
But never seem to care about attributing Delta margins to non-union labor. Which... they are a huge part of Delta margin advantage.
It's funny reading your pro-union nonsense after reading everywhere else about you raging against Unions for Delta. lol
Delta has ONE non-unionized front-line work group….try again
@Real_fly_guy_87
Only 20% of Delta's employees are unionized. I would like to hear about what unions they have representing other front line work groups...
thank you, Gavin.
Delta has 17,000 unionized pilots and 500 unionized dispatchers.
No other mainline Delta employee is unionized.
and the reason why DL is able to pay its employees more is because they deliver more revenue for the company.
Each Delta employee on average generates almost $600,000 in revenue per year which is 14% more than United employees and 47% more than American employees.
B6 employees generate almost as much revenue per employee...
thank you, Gavin.
Delta has 17,000 unionized pilots and 500 unionized dispatchers.
No other mainline Delta employee is unionized.
and the reason why DL is able to pay its employees more is because they deliver more revenue for the company.
Each Delta employee on average generates almost $600,000 in revenue per year which is 14% more than United employees and 47% more than American employees.
B6 employees generate almost as much revenue per employee as AA and more than WN employees.
UA is simply an exception in compensation among ALL US airlines.
Their profitability right now is heavily subsidized by their employees who have every right to express their displeasure at the lack of progress in getting competitive compensation.
Not sure what planet you live on real_fly
But delta has the pilots and dispatchers as union groups.
No one else. I guess dispatchers are frontline in some parallel universe? But the reality is delta has one union group that is frontline, total.
Every week on my survey I write that the Flight Attendants deserve a new contract and deserve to be paid during boarding (yes they are definitely working while we board). I encourage all of you who do a survey to do the same
Thank you !
They "demand" a new contract, do they?
They could have had one a couple of years ago, but they are holding out for things no other unions have gotten. They are being so unreasonable that the federal mediator, not United, broke off negotiations and said, the the effect of, "Call me when you get serious,"
Oh honey, tell me you’re MAGA without telling me. You’re pathetic and delusional. The union didn’t demand anything but for United to come to the table in good faith. If you scroll back and use google you will see the concessions United was demanding all while making record profits. United and Scott Kirby stalled for years on purpose. The negotiatior was also replaced if you’re paying attention instead of telling lies. The AFA may not...
Oh honey, tell me you’re MAGA without telling me. You’re pathetic and delusional. The union didn’t demand anything but for United to come to the table in good faith. If you scroll back and use google you will see the concessions United was demanding all while making record profits. United and Scott Kirby stalled for years on purpose. The negotiatior was also replaced if you’re paying attention instead of telling lies. The AFA may not be amazing but the blame here goes directly to United
The blame is entirely on Sara Nelson for prioritizing American's AFPA union vs her own. Her strategy was an epic failure for her own members and the blame resides with her. Her AFA leadership was barely at the table with United the last few years... they were working with APFA. Go figure.
Know who to blame: Sara Nelson
You’re fcking slow. Sara Nelson does not even go to negotiations or bargain. That’s an entirely different group of people who are responsible for that. Try again. Next!
You're right... she doesn't go. For her LARGEST UNION. Because she was busy with AA Flight Attendants. Neither did her top staff because they were with AA, the APFA, and the NMB (not United)
But at least we agree. The head of AFA doesn't care about her biggest group of members.
try again. Next.
The union tried to negotiate for years!!! If United and Scott Kirby refuse to negotiate then obviously they can’t force them MAGA
again. No.
Sara Nelson’s entire strategy was apfa first, AFA second in hopes of getting the best deal for AFA
Then trump won and her strategy was an epic joke.
No wonder you AFA people are bad at voting. You don’t even know your own leadership strategy
Sorry but the AFA is partially responsible for United FA's not having a contract. For the AFA the big prize they want is Delta but to win over enough Delta FA's they need an industry leading contract for United. The AFA wanted Southwest, American and Alaska to all go first. The AFA in fact did send their own people over to AA to help with negotiations, and from what I've heard they've been asking Delta...
Sorry but the AFA is partially responsible for United FA's not having a contract. For the AFA the big prize they want is Delta but to win over enough Delta FA's they need an industry leading contract for United. The AFA wanted Southwest, American and Alaska to all go first. The AFA in fact did send their own people over to AA to help with negotiations, and from what I've heard they've been asking Delta FA's who've signed cards what are their views on AA's contract, they've also done the same with Alaska's contract. If the AFA can in deed deliver an industry leading contract it is almost guaranteed Delta FA's will vote to unionize with the AFA which is what Sarah Nelson wants. She wants Delta's 30,000 FA's represented by the AFA. Truth is Sarah and the AFA are closer than they've ever been with Delta but it all comes down to United and the contract the AFA secures for United FA's because from what I've heard the AFA is also telling Delta FA's who sign the cards they will exceed whatever contract they secure for United FA's if Delta FA's would sign the card and then vote the AFA in at Delta. So yes Sarah and the AFA are partially to blame for it taking so long for United FA's to get a deal.
One can only be amazed by the quality of United and American products in their international business class.
It makes one not want to fly Delta, ever.
"...I’d hope that we can all agree that United flight attendants deserve significant pay raises. The cost of living has increased massively in the years since the start of the pandemic, yet their pay has stayed the same."
But their pay has not stayed the same - each of them gets a raise literally every year. Very few positions or industries are guaranteed a pay raise every single year. Only the pay scale has stayed the same.
I generally agree, but it's worth mentioning that Union contracts have pros and cons. Bad union leadership is a significant con, but one changed by votes that UA FAs could've done many times in the last few years.
Union members generally benefit from significant quality of life measurements vs non-union people like Delta FAs. But... they need union leaders that focus on their own members, not APFA members like Sara Nelson did.
Sara Nelson's own social media is more concerned with auto workers and the UAW or government employee groups than flight attendants.
completely untrue. once you are topped out, you don't receive any more raises. I haven't had one for four years.
That is incorrect. The pay scale tops out at 13 years, so while small yearly contractual raises occur those are only through the date of signing up until the year before the amendable date. In this case the last contractual raise was Aug 28, 2020. Those were at or over 13 years on that date have not seen a raise since then.
Pay attention! Part of having a current contract means you get two raises a year vs one. Your anniversary raise and a cost of living raise. Since the contract became amendable in 2021 this means no cost of living raise!!!
Also if you are topped out there would be no raises either. Since the contract was ratified in 2016 and we are in 2025 this means their raises are beyond eroded . SFO, BOS,...
Pay attention! Part of having a current contract means you get two raises a year vs one. Your anniversary raise and a cost of living raise. Since the contract became amendable in 2021 this means no cost of living raise!!!
Also if you are topped out there would be no raises either. Since the contract was ratified in 2016 and we are in 2025 this means their raises are beyond eroded . SFO, BOS, LAX, HNL, IAD, EWR SAN as bases a new hire can not survive off raises that were voted in 2016. Class dismissed!!
A longevity adjustment is not a raise. These adjustments 1. Only apply to those with less than 13 years seniority, which is less than half the work group and 2. Rarely even beat out annual inflation except the big jumps at year 6 and year 10
From the ‘right side’ of the pond it would appear that some of those on the ‘left’ are revolting. One only hopes that nothing bad comes of the current tribulations and that the end result is a satisfactory outcome for all.
I think it’s more than telling to say UA flight attendants are undeserving of raises despite them making the least in comparison to Delta, Alaska, Southwest, and American. Yet United is the one of the top airlines in revenue brought in behind Delta. I’m going to assume these are Trump supporters
That's one way to lose your job.
What are the increased expectations of FA's for all of this additional money? That's not a point that's discussed. American FA's are paid a bit more but is American gonna be an airline in 10 years? Employees could care less, they just always want more. Humans are never satisfied with anything. Give them a 10% raise and years later they want 20%. I'm all for getting more but...
That's one way to lose your job.
What are the increased expectations of FA's for all of this additional money? That's not a point that's discussed. American FA's are paid a bit more but is American gonna be an airline in 10 years? Employees could care less, they just always want more. Humans are never satisfied with anything. Give them a 10% raise and years later they want 20%. I'm all for getting more but with more comes increased responsibility and expectations too. And we just haven't seen that with FA's over the past decade.
You ignore and discredit the vast majority of UA FA’s who are perfectly great, happy, and accommodating employees to the passengers. Every single workgroup has their bad apples - why do these bad apples get to undermine the efforts and work ethic of thousands of us?
No. The majority are average. Not overachievers. Idk what world you live in where everyone gets a participation trophy, but this ain't Sweden.
I believe AA will be around in 10 years. Maybe file for BK and restructure, etc.
Alonzo have you seen the obscene increase in pay that our CEO has taken the last 2 years? Speaking of wanting more….
Why is CEO pay always targeted? Could you do what they do? Could any of the Frontline staff do the job of a CEO? No. It's a hard job and there's a reason why they get paid what they do. You can argue fairness and the amount but you have never been in the shoes of a fortune 500 CEO. It's why they are the 0.01% because the other 99.9% can't do it. Frontline staff...
Why is CEO pay always targeted? Could you do what they do? Could any of the Frontline staff do the job of a CEO? No. It's a hard job and there's a reason why they get paid what they do. You can argue fairness and the amount but you have never been in the shoes of a fortune 500 CEO. It's why they are the 0.01% because the other 99.9% can't do it. Frontline staff are REPLACEABLE. CEO's are not easily replaceable. Especially not good ones. Kirby ain't the best CEO by any means, but he doesn't suck at his job.
And idk what world you guys live in, but if you continually pay people for past performance and not future performance, you will go bankrupt. Show me what you can do, not what you have done.
Increased responsibilities??
When your employees contribute to several years of record-breaking, historic profit, they have ALREADY EARNED their pay increases. These flight attendants have already seen continued increases in service levels without any increase in the number of staffing in the cabin. They have ALREADY see the company stretch the contract as thin as possible to squeeze extra out of them for no increase in pay. They have ALREADY done the work that allowed...
Increased responsibilities??
When your employees contribute to several years of record-breaking, historic profit, they have ALREADY EARNED their pay increases. These flight attendants have already seen continued increases in service levels without any increase in the number of staffing in the cabin. They have ALREADY see the company stretch the contract as thin as possible to squeeze extra out of them for no increase in pay. They have ALREADY done the work that allowed the CEO to increase his pay by 246%. Very little of the profit they have ALREADY generated has made it to their pockets. But you probably think the C Suite and investors are the only ones who should be rewarded for good performance.
Ben wrote "but I’d hope that we can all agree that United flight attendants deserve significant pay raises. The cost of living has increased massively in the years since the start of the pandemic, yet their pay has stayed the same."
We cannot all agree that United FA's deserve any pay raise. Some of their work ethic and work product is terrible, almost as bad as American and Sprit. The costs of living has no...
Ben wrote "but I’d hope that we can all agree that United flight attendants deserve significant pay raises. The cost of living has increased massively in the years since the start of the pandemic, yet their pay has stayed the same."
We cannot all agree that United FA's deserve any pay raise. Some of their work ethic and work product is terrible, almost as bad as American and Sprit. The costs of living has no bearing. Look at Biden, who cut Medicare in 2025 3% (and Trump didn't reverse it). There are professionals, like physical therapists and doctors, who depend on Medicare payments to survive.
The problem is really that United FA fat cats make too much money and should just earn their fair share, which is less. The younger FAs need more money and often provide better service.
I love how fingers are immediately pointed at the senior FA "fat cats" while Kirby and the C-suite get multiples of their annual salary as cash bonuses. Not even factoring in their stock compensation, which they then pump by buying back stock. You know the old saying "boss makes a dollar, I make a dime, that's why I poop on company time"? This is people poop on company time. Because 99% of the time the...
I love how fingers are immediately pointed at the senior FA "fat cats" while Kirby and the C-suite get multiples of their annual salary as cash bonuses. Not even factoring in their stock compensation, which they then pump by buying back stock. You know the old saying "boss makes a dollar, I make a dime, that's why I poop on company time"? This is people poop on company time. Because 99% of the time the company doesn't care about them and doesn't compensate them fairly for their labor.
Protesting low pay in NYC is telling on yourself. Not even a half hour from Brooklyn Navy Yard are top law firms and other places where a first-year associate makes close to $300k. Partners are making $3-30m. If the neighboring offices are high finance firms (hedge funds and the like) there are people making $300m.
The opportunity to make money is there in NYC and you don't need to demand anything.
Like lawyers will keep manufacturing billable hours and soak people charging $500, $1000, or even $1500 per hour. Lawyers fight for themselves and the client is just secondary. A few are ok, though.