Flight attendants don’t get paid their hourly rate until the aircraft doors close.
ideate the most vivid part of your task . Now imagine doing it while being surrounded by people who areanxious , at sea , and impatient , all count to you for direction and help — and you ’re not evenbeing paidfor it . That ’s just part of the gig for manyflight attendantsacross the US .
Justine , a flight of steps attendant currently work on for Alaska Airlines , who was cede namelessness to speak freely about her employer , explains that this is a small but exhausting part of the business . “ The most thwarting aspect of it is that I ’m there symbolize the air hose , I ’m in my uniform , I ’m doing my chore and I could do something unseasonable and be disciplined , but I ’m not getting paid . ”
Earlier this year , Julie Hedrick , a flight attendant for American Airlines and Chief Executive of the Association of Professional Flight Attendants ( APFA ) , toldNPR , “ we have a lot of time in our days that we are unpaid . ”
Photo by Jeffrey Greenberg/Universal Images Group via Getty Images
Airlines like Alaskaarguethat unpaid hours are in theory factored into the overall pay pace , as flight attendants like Hedrick and Justine are give by miles – or TFPs ( Trips For Pay)–not by hours bring . But when the amount of time on the land is pair with increased customer servicing and safety responsibilities , many flight attendants argue it does n’t quite add together up — and they ’re seeking to amend this in their sexual union declaration talks presently underway . “ These are meaning tariff that we have to do in addition to keeping everybody calm on board”explainedSara Nelson , Chief Executive of the AFA ( Association of Flight Attendants ) , a unification that represents flight attendants at airline including Alaska and United , to NPR .
According to Justine , “ it ’s that 45 minutes of some of the hardest , high - loudness work ” that also happens to be the same period of time of time they are n’t getting pay an hourly rate for . She took Thrillist through a distinctive boarding outgrowth to explain what this is like from the crew ’s point of view .
Arrival at the airport
For flight attendants , the workday set out when they come in uniform at the airport an hr before flight departure . “ permit ’s say I have a 5:30 pm flying . I have to be within a certain law of proximity of the airport by 4:30 . ” Her air hose - issued phone facilitates tick off - in , but the localization tracking on the phone mean she has to physically be inside the airdrome . “ My headphone knows where I ’m at ; I ca n’t check in early from the parking circumstances or anything like that . ”
Keep in thinker that curb in is not the same as “ clocking in . ” At a distinctive job , the here and now you get in for oeuvre is when you bulge getting paid . “ I have to physically be in the airport in uniform an time of day before going , but I do n’t originate getting paid until we shut out the doors of the aircraft . ”
Emergency Checks
45 second before departure , flight attendants are required to be on the aircraft and complete a series of safe checks before passenger can start boarding . “ Each flight tender is assigned to an surface area of the aircraft to check the emergency equipment — oxygen bottles , aesculapian kit — and we check our jump buns and go through all the unlike checklist for equipment that thankfully we do n’t usually have to utilize . ”
The boarding process for flight attendants
embarkation for passengers typically starts 40 minutes before release and it often sets the tone of the intact flight .
Pre - boarders are the first on , which include individuals who require special help and unaccompanied tyke . There ’s a level of attention for pre - borders that flight attendants like Justine are required to provide . “ We have to establish a percentage point of link with certain rider , and do a briefing with them . That ’s fundamentally explaining exits , finding out what I can do to help them , and what to do if there ’s an emergency . ”
Then comes first class and general boarding . flight of steps attendants working up front attend to first class passengers . “ We do pre - departure drink that we have to serve , which is done while hoi polloi are boarding . We have to dodge passengers while serve things like Champagne-Ardenne and orange succus . ”
Flight attendants working for most major airlines in the US are required to be at the airport and in uniform well before takeoff.|Photo by Andreas Arnold/picture alliance via Getty Images
Flight attendants at the back of the aircraft are busy “ set up the cookhouse , getting go-cart ready for drinkable armed service . They do n’t come on board quick to serve , so you have to orchestrate things so when you get into the air , you ’re ready to go … especially on a shorter flight . ”
Being task with helping passengers “ can be a more emotionally drain aspect of a stumble because you may tell mass are on edge , ” Justine explains . flight of stairs attendants are expected to help people find their seats and assist with bagful management , which can be the most clock time - consuming part of the boarding process . “ We have to figure out if we call for to learn bags , if people need to consolidate , and to watch for masses with multiple bags , ” she say . “ We ’re not hypothesize to sneak bags because if I ’m bruise during boarding , I ’m not cover , but sometimes people need help . ”
Even though they are n’t “ clocked in , ” flight attender are also used to dealing with thing going wrong during boarding . Justine recently “ had a medical during boarding latterly , nothing tough , but a gentleman was crazy , so we had to discontinue boarding and get him off . ” When medical issues find during this time , flight attendants check with gate agents and a Medlink , a ground - based aesculapian advisory service , to see if they can discharge a rider to fly .
Passengers go through the boarding process with flight attendants who have not officially “clocked in."|Photo by Lindsey Nicholson/Universal Images Group via Getty Images
“ We are the first argumentation of defense for the full aircraft , but we ’re not being yield . ”
We ’ve all view viral video of airplane freakouts , and these are exactly the variety of scenarios that flight accompaniment more and more find themselves dealing with . According to the FAA , between January and June of 2024 , there were 915 pillowcase of unruly passengers , including 106 cases in which the passenger was lift up .
observe passengers safe is a flight attendee ’s primary responsibility . “ We are the first product line of defence force for the entire aircraft , but we ’re not being paid , ” she explain . “ A lot of our job is watching people . A big one that I do is blame out our ABPs ( able - bodied somebody ) that could potentially help me during emergencies . ”
An airplane passenger adding items to the overhead bin.|Photo by: Jeffrey Greenberg/UCG/Universal Images Group via Getty Images
Not only that , but flight attendants must be vigilant throughout boarding for security issues , or anything that could cut off the flight . “ We ’re expect out for a individual who looks nauseated or drunk , because I will have to check on them . If something looks suspect , I ’m the one who ’s give way to notice it and report it . ”
Finally , after all passengers are board and settle in their seats and the aircraft doorway close , the flight attendants finally start getting pay for their labor .
How the flight attendant pay structure breaks down
Becauseairlines like Justine ’s often practice the TFPssystem , rather than hours worked , each trip tends to be worth the same amount of TFPs , though the rate of earnings is typically based on seniority .
TFP rate with no compensation for boarding can work out well for fourth-year flight attendants , as they be given to work few but long flights , reducing the amount of amateur time spent facilitate boarding processes . But for junior flight of steps attendants just start out , it mean working a high quantity of short flights . As Hendricks explain to NPR , “ it ’s our most disorderly and the hardest sentence in our day , and we can have four to five boardings per day . ” Multiple embarkation significantly increases the amount of unpaid time of day per calendar week , so when factor into the rate of pay when really in the breeze , they may be barely establish minimal remuneration .
For example , a flight attendant cultivate a one 60 minutes flying will only get pay for the time between aircraft door closing , and up to 15 minutes after the door open for deplane . But , that one hour flight can take up to four hour of piece of work . With a TFP of about $ 41 for a seventh year escape attendant , the pay for a four - to - five - hour day of work would work out to between $ 8.20 and $ 10.24 per hour .
presently , only two airline business , Delta and Southwest , have introduced payment for boarding . However , this is at a fraction of the stock rate , with Delta offering 50 % and Southwest 25 % .
How to Make Your Flight Crew’s Job Easier
While flight attendant unions and airlines are fighting for embarkment earnings , here are some things to remember for your next flight :
