Spirit Flight Attendants Reject Tentative Contract

(Sun Sentinel/MCT) —

For the second time this year, Spirit Airlines flight attendants have rejected a tentative contract agreement reached with airline management.

In a majority vote Wednesday, the flight attendants represented by the Association of Flight Attendants-CWA failed to ratify a new contract agreement brokered in August by the parties.

In February, the unionized group rejected an earlier tentative agreement.

Of the 78.41 percent of Spirit’s 1,400 flight attendants who participated in Wednesday’s ballot, 64 percent voted against the contract, the AFA said.

The latest contract agreement included economic improvements, health-care protections and key quality-of-life provisions, according to the union.

The Miramar, Fla.-based low-cost carrier and its flight attendants have been in contract negotiations since 2007. Two years later, when discussions stalled, talks entered the supervision of the National Mediation Board in Washington, D.C.

Since then, the flight attendants have staged several informational pickets and also voted to authorize a strike should talks ultimately fail.

AFA will meet with its collective-bargaining department Thursday to determine next steps, spokeswoman Corey Caldwell said.

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