Airline unions wary of more competition hope for an ally in Donald Trump
A slew of labor unions representing some of America's largest airlines, including Dallas-based Southwest and American, plan to picket the White House in hopes that a..
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Those politicians include 175 members of Congress from both parties who co-sponsored a bill last year that would negate the Obama administration's decision to give Norwegian Air the permits. Supporters of the bill, which never made it out of committee, include Fort Worth, Texas-area Democrats Rep. Marc Veasey and Rep. Eddie Bernice Johnson, whose district includes Southwest's headquarters, and conservative Texas Republicans like Rep. Roger Williams of Austin.
"My first responsibility is to represent District 30, and I might not be as fair to others as possible in all cases," Johnson said, acknowledging that a large employer in her district affected her decision-making. "I respect labor standards, and they're not always upheld out of the country."
Veasey also highlighted labor and safety standards as the reason behind his opposition to the deal.
"I stand with the pilots and the flight attendants," Veasey said. "It would be a way to undercut safety. It would be a way to undercut wages and make workers here in the U.S. less competitive. In this disagreement they (the Trump administration) can step in and show this isn't just a bunch of talk."