Dozens of Southwest Airlines pilots spent their day off on Tuesday setting up an office in Howard County. The work comprises part of an ongoing labor action that could lead to a strike that would impact thousands of Maryland travelers.
"Everyone that's here is a pilot. The ones in the white shirts ... are here volunteering on a day off because they're serious about getting this contract done," said Anthony Mulhare, a member of the Southwest Airlines Pilots Association.
Tuesday's launch of the Baltimore Regional Strike Center at the Columbia Gateway Corporate Park is an unprecedented step for the Southwest Airlines Pilots Association, union officials told 11 News. The union said Southwest Airlines pilots do not want to go on strike, but they're preparing anyway and that the center is one of the biggest steps the union has taken so far.
Pilots have been in contract talks with the airline for more than three years, seeking better pay, benefits and working conditions. Negotiations continued this week.
The union said if nothing happens, the pilots are prepared to picket by Dec. 30.
"Our union leadership feels a strike is a realistic outcome of the negotiations at this point," Mulhare said.
It's a holiday labor action that would cripple the airline, and some say, lead to a repeat of Southwest's 2022 holiday travel meltdown. Some union leaders said that without additional IT upgrades, manpower and equipment, the airline could repeat last year's debacle on its own.
"Some of the things that our negotiating team is working towards would help make the operation more efficient and more recoverable from some of the issues we saw last year. But if we were to go out and strike, no pilot would fly a Southwest Airlines aircraft, and that would stop all service to the company," Mulhare said.
WBAL-TV 11 News reached out to the airline, which sent a statement in response, saying: "Our negotiations continue this week, and we'll keep working to reach an agreement that rewards our pilots and places them competitively in the industry." The statement also detailed numerous operational changes and upgrades made in the last year.
See the full story on WBAL-TV 11 News.
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