Welcome New Members!
Welcome to the Association of Flight Attendants-CWA, AFL-CIO (AFA-CWA). You have joined the world’s largest
Flight Attendant Union, representing 50,000 Flight Attendants at 19 carriers within the 700,000-Member strong Union,
the Communications Workers of America. AFA-CWA Membership also entitles you to the benefits enjoyed by some 13 million
working men and women who comprise the AFL-CIO.
Seeking a voice in their workplace, six visionary women founded AFA-CWA over 67 years ago. AFA’s first Contract,
ratified in 1946, sought to establish hours of work, seniority rights, improve working conditions, set rates of
compensation, and develop procedures for the orderly and fair settlement of workplace disputes. Today, AFA-CWA Contracts
are the product of over 67 years of bargaining. We continually fight to preserve and improve our hard won job protections,
work rules, benefits and retirement security.
AFA is your voice in the workplace and beyond. It is your participation that makes our Union a success. AFA maintains
a broad-based legal staff to protect the gains won over the decades at the bargaining table; seeks improvements
for our safety and health; testifies before Congress and maintains regular contact with lawmakers on issues directly
affecting Flight Attendants’ working conditions; spreads AFA’s message through daily contact with the
media; and maintains a peer referral network of counselors through its Employee Assistance Program.
Through the years, AFA has won substantial victories over discriminatory barriers which limited the professional
lives of Flight Attendants. Today, men and women, married or single, with or without children, call this profession
their own. Flight Attendants have earned respect and admiration through their dedicated service to the public and
their proven record as safety professionals.
We are proud of our strong AFA-CWA heritage at United. The Association of Flight Attendants-CWA, AFL-CIO is effective
because Members like you make it work. AFA-CWA depends on the new ideas and creative energy of Members like you.
Every Member has a chance to voice his or her opinions through a democratic process. Join your Local Council Officers
and flying partners at the next Union meeting. It’s a great opportunity to meet one another, become familiar
with our democratic system and improve our Union, working conditions, and future. Become an AFA activist to be an
integral part of our continued success.