ATLANTA, July 22, 2024—Delta Air Lines Ramp Workers, alongside labor and community allies, recently gathered in Atlanta for an engaging discussion on the Roland Martin Unfiltered Show. The discussion in front of a live audience focused on their ongoing efforts to gain union representation with the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM).
The IAM has a campaign for approximately 20,000 Delta Air Lines ramp, cargo, and tower workers. Delta is the only U.S.-based mainline carrier where a union does not represent flight attendants, fleet service, and mechanics – only 20 percent of Delta workers are unionized. Unionized Delta pilots endorsed the campaign to organize Delta workers.
The event, held both in-person at the IBEW Hall in Atlanta and broadcast live on Roland Martin Unfiltered platforms, featuring a dynamic panel that included:
- IAM Air Transport Territory General Vice President Richie Johnsen
- Georgia STAND-UP CEO Deborah Scott
- Georgia AFL-CIO President Yvonne Brooks
- Earl Hunt, Delta Air Lines Ramp Worker
- Amanda Goodman Berry, Delta Air Lines Ramp Worker
- Dan McCurdy, Delta Air Lines Ramp Worker
- Felix “Flex” McGhee, Delta Air Lines Ramp Worker
- Gameli Appiah, Delta Air Lines Ramp Worker
“We had a great conversation with Roland Martin about our fight to organize Ramp Workers at Delta Air Lines,” said IAM Air Transport Territory General Vice President Richie Johnsen. “This campaign is about the workers, and it was important for their voices to be heard on one of the biggest platforms in the nation. This campaign is building momentum, and we feel confident that Delta Ramp Workers will get the respect and dignity they deserve.”
Johnsen also highlighted the support from elected officials in Congress. The IAM has garnered the support of 26 U.S. Senators and a bipartisan group of more than 150 members of the U.S. House, led by the House Labor Caucus, who have called on Delta to remain neutral toward unions.
WATCH: GVP Johnsen’s interview with Roland Martin on the battle to unionize Delta Ramp Workers
- Delta Ramp Workers discussed their experience of intimidation and anti-union tactics while working at Delta Air Lines. The Ramp Workers called on Delta CEO Ed Bastian and the company’s leadership to respect workers’ rights and adopt a neutrality agreement. They emphasized the need for Delta to allow workers to decide on unionization without harassment or intimidation. The campaign is in the “card signing” phase (50% +1 Delta Ramp Workers must sign a card for an election to be held), which means workers are only seeking the right to vote in a union election.
More Perfect Union also featured Delta Ramp Workers and their campaign at Delta Air Lines in a video that has over 100K views.
WATCH: Huge organizing drive underway at the U.S.’s largest non-union airline.
Georgia AFL-CIO President Yvonne Brooks and Georgia STAND-UP CEO Deborah Scott explained the connection between the right to vote and the right to free union elections, which are the keys to democracy. Voting lets citizens choose their leaders and shape laws, while union elections empower workers to have a voice at work.
Watch the entire broadcast of the Roland Martin Show: “IAM’s Fight to Unionize Delta Ramp Worker.”
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