Slog

News & Arts

Line Out

Music & the City
at Night

« Akin Is the Rape Victim | A Critical Overview of The Stranger… »

Wednesday, August 22, 2012

Transportation / Economy Alaska Airlines Craps on SeaTac

Posted by Goldy on Wed, Aug 22, 2012 at 8:54 AM

When I saw the headline in the op-ed section of the Seattle Times—"Alaska Airlines should hire contractors that pay a living wage"—I at first feared the union-hating editorial board had suffered a collective stroke. Then I clicked through and realized that it was just a guest column from SeaTac deputy mayor Mia Gregerson. The editors sometimes allow that to demonstrate how open-minded they are.

The companies Alaska contracts with to provide ground services at SeaTac—handling bags, cleaning cabins, fueling planes—pay their workers at or near the minimum wage with few benefits and little job protection. It's kind of a disgrace that the dominant airline in Jet City treats its workers so badly, and as Gregerson points out, it has a terrible impact on the local economy:

As a SeaTac City Council member, I can see the impact of this poverty-wage airport economy every day. When so many people struggle to provide their families with life's basic needs, our neighborhoods suffer. Kids struggle to thrive in school. And South King County communities like mine struggle to build strong local economies without a solid base of living-wage jobs.

I have met with many airport workers, most recently at a community forum sponsored by Puget Sound Sage and Working Washington. These workers are my neighbors, friends and constituents. They are taxpayers who want to contribute to our economy. Some are immigrants and refugees from around the world who came here seeking opportunities for a better life. Many work multiple jobs. And almost none has access to health care outside of community health clinics and local emergency rooms.

In other words, we're subsidizing Alaska's profits by picking up the health care costs of their workers. Ain't free-market capitalism grand?

FacebookShare

Comments (19) RSS

Oldest First Unregistered On Registered On Add a comment

So they're doing what Hansen's arena will do? Poverty wages and very little healthcare for arena workers, which is the industry standard? Good job, Alaska! Here, have some public money!

Posted by Baconcat on August 22, 2012 at 9:03 AM

According to my wingnut relatives this is exactly how it is supposed to be. Same with the article before this one about low salaries for day care workers and teachers: they make enough (or even too much). Because Capitalism! And low airfares (ignore for a moment that most of them never have and never will take a plane anywhere).

When i point out how depending on ER's and low-cost clinics is akin to supporting socialism they get this blank, glassy stare.

Posted by Dr_Awesome on August 22, 2012 at 9:06 AM

We should not be surprised when companies take advantage of the law to maximize company profits. That's inherent in the structure of corporations, and it is more or less a good thing.

Instead, we should change the law such that companies can not take advantage of it.

Posted by saeculorum on August 22, 2012 at 9:06 AM

There are security concerns here too.

Posted by Dan Savage on August 22, 2012 at 9:11 AM

Corporate greed and a customer base who wants to pay next to nothing for everything they purchase is just a bad mix.

Posted by Cato the Younger Younger on August 22, 2012 at 9:18 AM

unionize and strike.

Posted by Max Solomon on August 22, 2012 at 9:33 AM

Relying on a corporation to do the right thing is pointless, a corporation is amoral, and will act only in the interest of it’s shareholders, the solution here is twofold, one is with the Port Of Seattle, if we elected pro-labor Port Commissioners, they could impose a Davis-Bacon type law at the airport, secondly workers must be organized, a national card check law should be a priority.

Posted by Merchant Seaman on August 22, 2012 at 9:40 AM

Following up on @7 - Goldy, why don't you ask Gael Tarleton what she thinks about this?

Posted by elaineinballard on August 22, 2012 at 9:46 AM

Agreed with @7. The price in labor markets is set by supply and demand, so it's pointless to complain when a firm tries to get the best price from its perspective. @6 is right that unionization is the right way to go if you want to set a price floor for the wage. Although public campaigns against firms to get them to change their behavior are occasionally effective, as was the case against tuna brands before Dolphin-safe tuna. Back then, people like me were saying, "you're wasting your time," and activists won. I'm assuming that Goldy hasn't flown Alaska airlines since he started blogging about the wages. Right, Goldy?

Posted by David from Chicago on August 22, 2012 at 10:12 AM

I meant to say "However public campaigns against firms..." Sorry.

Posted by David from Chicago on August 22, 2012 at 10:14 AM

This would explain why Alaska's baggage handlers were busted in a theft scheme a few years ago.

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/lo…

The reason we pay cops a robust wage is to prevent the corruption that has destroyed countries like Mexico. Keep under paying the people in charge of airplanes, and we'll see that system collapse too.

Posted by Sir Vic on August 22, 2012 at 10:36 AM

Bizarre, since Alaska treats their actual employees quite well. I guess this is where they get their money back.

Posted by dak7e on August 22, 2012 at 10:44 AM

@6 they were unionized Alaska Airlines employees on the ramp 7 years ago. The last 10 years at AAG has been a good long run of unfaithful negotiations and contracting out full workgroups in the dead of night (ramp, cleaning, mechanical, etc), all to save money at the expense of their reputation. Menzies (the ground operations contractor) is just particularly shitty.

Posted by AAG are bastards on August 22, 2012 at 11:38 AM

Ain't free-market capitalism grand?

While I agree that AA should hire contractors that pay a living wage, this kind of argument is immature and unconstructive.

A story about a public school treating its students badly:

"Ain't public education grand?"

A story about a patient in Canada being mistreated.

"Ain't socialized medicine grand?"

Those would be terrible, immature statements to make based on those cases. It's not about the system. It's about the behavior of the individuals in that system. Socialized medicine, like public education, and free-market capitalism, works well for lots of people and improves their lives.

Rationally discussing the bad behavior of individuals within a system and the best way to combat that behavior means resisting the knee-jerk ideological condemnation of entire systems that, when practiced in good faith by competent people, usually work.

Posted by LJM on August 22, 2012 at 1:17 PM

@ 14
The “Ain’t Free Market capitalism Grand” remark is a sarcastic reference to the fact that low wage employers, like these contractors, or Walmart are subsidized by the taxpayer when their employees use taxpayer funded services to make up for the lack of wages from their jobs

Posted by Merchant Seaman on August 22, 2012 at 1:36 PM

@15

If that's the case, then I unreservedly apologize to Goldy and everyone else for my rant. It's a statement I frequently hear from ideologues of all stripes who use an example of individuals acting badly to condemn a system, and I too quickly interpreted it that way.

Posted by LJM on August 22, 2012 at 1:47 PM

Asking corporations to fix these kinds of problems is pointless, especially in this time of (admittedly self-created) economic crisis. We've trusted corporations to do the right thing for too long, already. Whether or not corporations are people, many have not been good citizens. We need a cultural change that edifies civic responsibility.

Posted by Space_Magic_5 on August 22, 2012 at 2:49 PM

@17,

While I wouldn't complain about a cultural change that emphasizes civic responsibility, what I would prefer to see is legislation and governmental regulations that force companies to behave responsibly. Because, even if big corporations can be shamed into behaving themselves, the overwhelming majority of businesses are not large corporations. All workers deserve adequate pay and benefits and workplace protections.

Posted by keshmeshi on August 22, 2012 at 4:05 PM

How does that compare with other airlines at Sea Tac? I'd happily stop flying Alaska over this if it doesn't mean giving money to an airline that does the exact same thing.

Posted by Free Lunch on August 22, 2012 at 6:37 PM