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The Delta Organizing Campaign & Bump Caps
Delta is the only U.S.-based mainline carrier where a union does not represent flight attendants, fleet service, and mechanics. As a result, tens of thousands of Delta workers lack a voice on the job. As part of a multi-union campaign, the IAM is currently organizing approximately 20,000 ramp, cargo, and tower workers.138
Gameli Appiah is a ramp worker and union organizer at Atlanta International Airport. Having previously worked at UPS, Appiah understands the union difference. “I was surprised when I came to Delta to see the shape the equipment was in. It's a lot of equipment that shouldn't be out there. It's dangerous.”139
IAM member-led safety committees help implement informed safety procedures. At Delta, policies come down from executives with their eyes on the bottom line. Workers face disciplinary action if they don’t wear a “bump cap,'' supposedly to reduce head injuries. The caps–which often serve no obvious safety purpose–can raise temperatures 20–30 degrees for the person wearing it. “Climate justice is affecting workers, and in most cases, it's always going to hit the folks on the bottom,”140 says Human Rights Director Nicole Fears. “If you’re outside, you’re definitely suffering.”141 What's more, Delta only provides seven days off for sickness and personal leave, often forcing sick workers to choose between their health and their families’ needs.
“Nobody should be getting ill or dying from heat related illnesses,” argues Appiah, “We can prevent [tragedy] with basic safety measures, proper staffing, and education, instead of being so focused on profit that somebody doesn't make it home to their family.”142 The climate crisis heightens the need for workers to have a voice on the job. The Delta campaign demonstrates why climate adaptation must be a core part of new organizing campaigns.
END PULL-OUT BOX
At IAM-represented worksites, safety committee members walk the shop and collect data that informs safety procedures and bargaining priorities.143 When hazards arise, union officers and representatives can draw from up-to-date information to craft recommendations or demands. “The union difference” says Fraser, “is that we have established safety procedures…If it's brought to our attention by the workers, we address those issues with the company.”144
140 Appiah.
141 Appiah.
142 Appiah.
144 Fraser.
In addition to threatening workers, extreme weather threatens the future of air travel. In May 2024, extreme turbulence rocked a Singapore Airlines flight. High winds threw passengers and crew members throughout the cabin. Pilots steered the flight to an emergency landing, but dozens of passengers sustained injuries–and one lost his life.145 Lightning storms and high winds all disrupt air travel by damaging planes, delaying flights, and endangering people on the ground.146
Sea level rise, a direct consequence of the warming climate, already threatens hundreds of coastal airports around the world.147 In 2012, flooding from Hurricane Sandy shut down New York’s LaGuardia Airport for three days.148 Major worksites, such as Newark Airport, are at risk of inundation if global temperatures continue to rise.149 Violent storms, wildfires, and floods have endangered IAM members at airports in Puerto Rico, Guam, and Hawaii.150 Disruptive and dangerous weather events are making aviation jobs more hazardous and precarious.
Aircraft emissions, including CO2, nitrogen oxides, and particulates, have a substantial warming effect on the climate.151 A shift toward more sustainable aviation practices that centers workers’ perspectives will improve lives and the industry’s long-term outlook. Workers on the frontlines can help lead the way. Fraser sees transparent long term planning as a win-win proposition: “The public would recognize an airline that comes out and says, ‘we’ve met with our unions, we’re going to [decarbonize] in a way that doesn’t affect work.’”152