I’m a pretty pro-union guy, but I have a hard time supporting the union on this one, at least based on my understanding of the situation (thanks to PYOK for flagging this).
American crews demand more pay for Heathrow catering mess
For several weeks now, American has had a bit of a catering problem for flights departing London Heathrow (LHR). For years, American had partnered with dnata on catering out of the airport, but American abruptly cut ties with the catering company, which is owned by the Emirates Group.
It would appear that there might have been some health safety or cleanliness concerns with the caterer, so obviously that’s a problem. What makes matters worse is how long this has dragged on, as American has struggled to fully transition caterers:
- Initially, American had to double cater all flights to London Heathrow, meaning the food for the return flight was already loaded in the US; given limited galley space, this meant meal service had to be scaled back considerably
- American then managed to get DO&CO to cater its premium cabins, given that this is what British Airways uses, and American and British Airways have a joint venture
- For whatever reason, American still doesn’t have a catering contract for economy, so economy meals continue to be double catered from the United States
Obviously this is a new service flow for the crew, and is less than ideal. I imagine American is also dealing with a lot of unhappy economy passengers, given the even worse than usual food quality (meanwhile in premium cabins, food is largely better than before).
The Association of Professional Flight Attendants (APFA), which represents American’s flight attendants, is now getting involved in this issue. The union is demanding materially more pay for flight attendants working London flights, arguing that the catering issue has increased their workload.
On Monday, April 13, 2026, the New York chapter of the APFA told members it was fighting for more pay for crews working London flights:
The current conditions have materially changed how service is executed, and the added burden, particularly from double provisioning and modified service flows, has created a significantly increased and often unpredictable workload.
There is no question that Flight Attendants working these flights are doing more work under more difficult conditions, without any corresponding adjustment to staffing or compensation, and that is not acceptable.
Then on Thursday, April 16, 2026, the Dallas Fort Worth chapter of the union informed members it had formally filed a Notice of Dispute (NOD) with management, and if that didn’t resolve anything, the airline would file a Presidential Grievance:
Following sustained advocacy and continued efforts to hold senior management accountable, the DFW Base has formally filed a Notice of Dispute (NOD). This action directly reflects the concerns raised by our members and represents a necessary step in enforcing our contractual protections.
Despite repeated engagement, the issues impacting our crews—particularly within the LHR operation—remain unresolved. As a result, we are actively advancing this dispute through the appropriate contractual channels while continuing to pursue escalation, including the filing of a Presidential Grievance if warranted.
Our position is clear:
- The ongoing catering failures in the LHR market have materially altered working conditions and significantly increased workload for our Flight Attendants.
- These operational deficiencies have required crews to perform duties well beyond the scope of standard service expectations.
- The Company has an obligation to recognize and compensate for these impacts.
We are actively advocating for:
- Meaningful and appropriate compensation for all affected Flight Attendants
- Application of understaffing pay, where contractual thresholds have been met or exceeded
- Enforcement of Red Flag pay protections, where applicable under Section 10.H
- Accountability for the operational failures that have led to these conditions
This is not simply an operational inconvenience—it is a contractual and quality-of-work-life issue that demands resolution. Our members have continued to perform at a high level under increasingly challenging circumstances, and that effort must be recognized.
I have a hard time siding with flight attendants on this topic
I have a lot of respect for the profession of flight attendants, and for the most part I think they work hard, and I wouldn’t last very long in the job, because dealing with the traveling public can’t be easy.
That being said, based on my understanding of this situation, I have a hard time not rolling my eyes at this request, and it’s one of those things that makes me say “ah, this is why so many people don’t like unions.”
Is there a marginally increased workload with this temporary catering situation? I don’t doubt it. But they’re literally on the clock working, and there’s no indication that the workload is so great that they’re not able to get their standard crew rest, or anything.
American flight attendants are very competitively paid, despite American’s financial mess. Now they want to be paid as if a flight is understaffed? And they would like Red Flag pay protections, which offers 150% pay, and is normally reserved for when scheduling desperately needs flight attendants to pick up trips?
No disrespect to American flight attendants, but on long haul flights, they seem to have a lot of time to sit in the galley (as they should, since no one expects them to work nonstop).
Also, I get this is an oversimplification and that unions are there to advocate for their members, but this just seems a little tone deaf in the current environment. American is barely profitable in the first place, and the current jet fuel situation means the airline may very well lose billions. But the flight attendants want more.
To be clear, I say none of this in defense of management either, as the company needs new leadership. But yeah, that doesn’t mean I side with the union here. Keep in mind that for flight attendants, long haul flights are among the “easiest,” in terms of efficiently racking up flight hours.
If they find the workload of a two-day London trip to be too much, I’d encourage them to instead bid on a domestic sequence lasting several days that has 12 segments, with the same number of flight hours, and they can report back on how the workload compares.
Bottom line
American has been having issues with catering at Heathrow in recent weeks, as it cut ties with its existing supplier. The transition away from that hasn’t exactly been seamless, with flights still being double catered from the United States.
The union representing flight attendants is claiming that this has “significantly increased workload” for flight attendants, and has required crews to “perform duties well beyond the scope of standard service expectations.” So they’re demanding pay as if the flight is understaffed, and/or as if it’s a premium trip they’re picking up.
While I understand this situation isn’t ideal, this seems like a step too far to me. But hey, that’s just my take.
What do you make of the APFA’s request for more pay over catering issues?
