The majority of the food concessions at San Francisco International Airport were closed Monday as a thousand workers went on an indefinite strike over staffing numbers and wages, reports The Washington Post. And flight attendants at 21 airports in the United States are expected to demonstrate today to highlight understaffing problems. According to the Post, the air transportation industry has 54,000 fewer workers than it did on February 20.
From the Post:
Lucinda To is among the 1,000 workers on strike at San Francisco International, where she has worked for 20 years. She prepares buffets, washes dishes and clears tables at restaurants and the United Club lounge for weary travelers. It is draining work that has only gotten harder this year, she said. With inflation at 40-year-highs, To said she has to work 60 hours a week at two food service jobs at the airport for $16.99 an hour to afford a two-bedroom unit in the Bay Area. Her mortgage is $2,800 a month.
"Right now, on my wage, I make so little that I couldn't even buy one meal at this airport, where hamburgers are $22," To said. "I need to work two jobs to support my family, and I'm always working double shifts."
