To recap, the Association of Flight Attendants (afa) decided in 1992 to try to organize Delta’s flight
attendants. Even though there was little Delta flight attendant interest
in the afa, the afa proceeded with its campaign. After nine years of dumping
millions of dollars into the Delta Organizing campaign, the afa finally
had enough signed authorization cards to file for an election. On August
29, 2001, it petitioned the National Mediation Board ("NMB")
for an election.
The ballots were counted by the NMB on February 1, 2002. The afa lost the election by a landslide. Only 29% of
Delta flight attendants cast ballots for afa representation. Even though
the results of the ballot count indicated that 71% of us did not want
union representation, the afa continued in its attempt to organize Delta.
All along, the afa’s campaign literature said that the election was
about choice and respect. However, when we made our choice, the afa did
not respect us enough to abide by our decision.
The afa continued with its pre-balloting interference allegations and
contested our election. After months of investigation and deliberation,
the NMB announced its determination on December 12, 2002. The Board found
by a 2-1 vote that the AFA’s interference allegations were not
sufficient to cause the NMB to order a re-vote.
The afa then moved on to more pressing issues. Driven to the
brink of insolvency by poor leadership, its quest to organize Delta, and
the post 9-11 furloughing of many of its dues paying members, it was
forced to merge itself into the Communication Workers of America and cease
being an independent entity.
The campaign languished until 2007 when the CWA began to fund personnel
and expenses to try for a second run at the Delta flight attendants.
