Association of Professional Flight Attendants
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| Full name | Association of Professional Flight Attendants, APFA |
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| Affiliation | Independent |
| Office location | Euless, Texas |
| Country | United States |
| Website | www.apfa.org |
Founded in 1977, the Association of Professional Flight Attendants (APFA) is the largest independent flight attendant union in the nation. It represents the nearly 25,000 flight attendants at American Airlines. APFA members live in almost every state of the nation as well as several countries and serve millions of Americans as they travel the nation and the world. In 2003, APFA played a major role in keeping American Airlines solvent and out of bankruptcy by giving back an employee bailout of $340 million in annual salary and benefits, for a total of over $3 billion. APFA had been in negotiations with American for almost four years when the carrier filed for chapter 11-bankruptcy protection on November 29, 2011.
Apr 2003: American Airlines, following total losses of $5.3 billion in 2001 and 2002, undergoes what was called a “virtual bankruptcy.” Management uses the threat of bankruptcy to achieve concessions from unionized employees in the amount of $1.8 billion annually. Despite the new cost structure, American lost money through 2011.
Nov 2011: After years of losses, plunging stock prices, contract negotiations, and failed business strategies, American Airlines files for Chapter 11 protection in the US Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York. Arpey resigns as CEO and is replaced by longtime American executive Tom Horton. In a statement, Horton says he intends to use bankruptcy to “reduce our labor costs to competitive levels.”
Dec 2011: Shortly after the filing, the US Trustee appoints the Unsecured Creditors Committee (UCC). All three of the unions on the property are awarded a seat, as are the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC), Boeing Capital, Hewlett-Packard, and three major bond-holders. The UCC represents the interest of parties who are owed money by the bankrupt company and who do not have any collateral standing behind their claim. The committee becomes the de facto Board of Directors throughout the restructuring. Although the APA and TWU send representatives to the UCC, Laura Glading chooses to sit on the committee herself.
Jan 2012: The PBGC sends a public signal in support of American’s unions when its director, Josh Gotbaum, states that his agency is prepared to fight to prevent American from using bankruptcy to shed its pension plans. The PBGC is the federal agency that backstops retirees’ benefits when a company pension plan fails.
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