American Flight Attendant Union Issues Historic Vote Of No Confidence In CEO

American Airlines CEO Robert Isom is facing a lot of backlash from employees, over the company’s poor performance. A couple of weeks ago, American’s flight attendant union demanded management change, following the company reporting its lackluster 2025 earnings. The union is now stepping up its rhetoric a bit, and isn’t mincing words.

American flight attendants blast “downward spiral” under Isom

The Board of Directors of the Association of Professional Flight Attendants (APFA), which represents the company’s 28,000 flight attendants, has issued a unanimous vote of no confidence in CEO Robert Isom. This is the first time in the company’s history that the union has issued a vote of no confidence.

The union is demanding accountability, improved operational support, and leadership changes, amid what’s described as “a relentless downward spiral” under Isom’s leadership.

Here’s how APFA President Julie Hedrick describes this:

“From abysmal profits earned to operational failures that have front-line Workers sleeping on floors, this airline must course-correct before it falls even further behind. This level of failure begins at the very top, with CEO Robert Isom.”

“Management’s repeated failures are dragging this airline down and leaving frontline Workers to pay the price, including losing out on meaningful profit sharing at a company that should be thriving. When the recent winter storm hamstrung our operations to the point where Flight Attendants were sleeping on airport floors, Robert Isom’s response was that it was just ‘part of our job.’ His tone-deaf leadership shows a complete disregard for the human element and is actively harming both American Airlines and the people who keep it running every day.”

To expand on that, the union shared the following explanation for its issues with Isom:

The APFA Board of Directors enumerated the many reasons behind the unanimous vote of no confidence in CEO Robert Isom and the timeline for the progression, including:

• Post-pandemic performance concerns go unsolved: APFA began sounding alarms as American Airlines’ financial losses mounted and operational performance lagged behind major competitors, including United, Delta and Southwest Airlines.
• Executive compensation remains high while management’s financial results deteriorated: Despite failing financial and operational performance, American’s 2023 SEC Proxy Statement revealed significant increases in CEO Robert Isom’s compensation and benefits. During the company’s first-quarter 2024 earnings call, Isom stated he was “not satisfied” with results, even as top executives continued receiving substantial compensation packages.
• A failed corporate sales strategy, supported by CEO Isom, alienated business customers and contributed to a sharp decline in rankings: Management’s failed corporate sales and distribution strategy alienated key business customers and negatively impacted revenue, a major setback for the airline. After departing American abruptly in June 2024, the former chief commercial officer responsible for the sales debacle received more than $462,000 in base pay through January 31, 2025, and nearly $1 million in severance. In May 2025, J.D. Power ranked American Airlines last in first/business class customer satisfaction, with economy and basic economy also trailing major competitors. In The Wall Street Journal’s “2025 Best and Worst Airline Rankings,” American Airlines fell from fifth place in 2023 to last place overall in 2025.
• Operational challenges abound while Unions call for better management: Ongoing chaotic and mismanaged operations during weather events, service inconsistencies and declining customer trust indicate broader operational struggles noted by unionized workgroups at the carrier. By October 2025, all Unions representing American Airlines workers jointly called on management to present a credible turn-around strategy to address worsening performance gaps. The plan never materialized.

I don’t expect much to happen, but this is still significant

It goes without saying that contentious relations between unions and management at airlines is nothing new. So seeing unions release negative statements about leadership is hardly noteworthy on the surface. However, what I do think makes this different is that this is the first time that the union has ever issued such a vote of no confidence against the CEO.

All that being said, I wouldn’t expect anything to come of this. A few days ago, the Allied Pilots Association (APA), which represents American’s 16,000 pilots, wrote a letter to American’s Board of Directors, demanding “decisive change,” and stating that it has “lost confidence in management’s ability to correct course.”

The response was simply from Isom, who wrote the following, in part:

The Board and I are aligned with you in the desire to make American the strongest airline possible in every respect. We discussed your letter at length and agree that, as a member of the board and CEO, it is most appropriate that I get together with you, your leadership team, or the APA Board of Directors — whatever is best — as soon as possible.

So the union has issues with Isom, Isom and the rest of the board discussed the letter “at length,” and the response was for Isom to meet with the union?

American’s Board of Directors doesn’t exactly have a history of holding executives accountable, and it seems like this situation is no different. So for now, I’d consider the outcry for a management change to just be noise. Though who knows, maybe if this is sustained for long enough, they’ll be forced to act.

American is barely profitable as things stand, so maybe it’ll take another year of bad financial performance before something happens. Or who knows, maybe stuff still won’t change then.

Bottom line

American’s flight attendant union has issued a vote of no confidence in CEO Robert Isom, which is the first time that the union has ever had such a vote. The union references “a relentless downward spiral” under Isom’s leadership, and thinks the airline can only course-correct under new management.

American’s pilot union is equally frustrated, but the Board of Directors has dismissed their concerns. I wouldn’t expect much to come of this for now, but it sure seems like the board is just kicking the can down the road, so to speak.

What do you make of the union’s vote of no confidence?