Airline catering workers threaten to strike as soon as next week without agreement on new contract

WASHINGTON -- More than 8,000 airline catering workers are threatening to go on strike as soon as next week, adding more uncertainty to summer travel, which has already been disrupted by fallout from a widespread technology outage.

The workers are employed by Gategourmet, a subsidiary of a Swiss company. They prepare, pack and deliver food and drinks to planes at about 30 U.S. airports.

Unions representing the workers said Friday they have been negotiating six years for better pay and health insurance. The unions, including Unite Here and the Teamsters, say that only 25% of the workers are in the company's health plan and, as of January, some were paid as little as $13 an hour.

Although the catering workers are not employed by airlines, their unions argue that the airlines' profitability means that subcontractors like Gategourmet should be able to pay their workers better.

Gategourmet said it has made an “industry-leading offer” that includes wage and health care improvements. The company said the sides “have made progress” in the last few days, but if there is a strike at the early-Tuesday deadline, it will use “workaround options” to ensure minimal disruption to airlines.

Strikes in the airline industry are rare because of federal law requiring mediators to determine that future negotiations are unlikely to result in a settlement. In this case, the National Mediation Board released the unions from mediation June 29, which started a countdown toward a potential legal strike.

The two sides were meeting Friday.