The contract was approved by a unanimous vote on July 21 and will go into effect on August 1. The new three year agreement will see 72 Fuelers at Orlando International Airport join TWU Local 504, which represents workers at airports across the country. The TWU is the largest airport workers union in the country and the largest union on property at Orlando International Airport.
“This first contract for PrimeFlight Fuelers in Orlando provides significant economic gains for workers and their families,” said TWU International President John Samuelsen. “The new contract immediately turned the Fuelers represented by the TWU from the lowest-paid Fuelers on property to the highest-paid, and provides workers with both sick time and vacation instead of a management-controlled PTO system.”
The agreement immediately increases the starting pay rate for Fuelers from $15 an hour to $17.50 an hour. Pay increases at a rate of about $1 per hour per year of service and tops out at $20.50.
Previously, PrimeFlight Fuelers did not receive paid sick time or vacation, only a week’s worth of PTO per year that was subject to management’s discretion. The TWU contract includes 1 week of paid vacation for first-year workers, two weeks of vacation after three years of service, three weeks of vacation after five years of service and four weeks of vacation after 15 years of service. All workers will now receive six paid sick days per year with half of that time eligible to be rolled over.
The new contract also includes a grievance and arbitration procedure process and a discipline policy. PrimeFlight Fuelers were previously “at will” workers but are no longer “at will” workers with the new contract.
“This new contract provides major improvements to pay and working conditions and provides significant union protections,” said TWU Local 504 President Robert Payne. “We were proud to fight for PrimeFlight Fuelers at the bargaining table and we will continue to work on delivering contracts that improve the livelihoods of hardworking TWU members in Central Florida.”
The contract also includes eight paid holidays per year and guaranteed overtime pay for any hours worked above 40 hours per week. Any Fueler who is called in to work overtime on a day where they were not scheduled to work also receives four hours of pay. The company is also prohibited from suspending normal working hours to prevent workers from accruing overtime pay.
The PrimeFlight Fuelers are the largest group of Fuelers on property at MCO. They service flights on a contract basis from Southwest Airlines, American Airlines, United Airlines, Spirit Airlines, Frontier Airlines, Air France, and others. The Fuelers voted unanimously in February to join the TWU.
“This is a significant new contract that locks in major quality-of-life improvements for some of our newest members,” said TWU Organizing Director Angelo Cucuzza. “I’m proud that the TWU and Local 504 were able to deliver a first contract within months of PrimeFlight Fuelers voting to join the TWU.”