Furloughed by airlines, thousands of workers in Houston left reeling
Industry keeps pushing for more federal relief
The day Rene Trujillo and his wife, Jessica, lost their jobs with United Airlines, Rene started applying for unemployment, started figuring out whose coverage to cut from his family’s health plan and helped his 8- and 5-yearolds with technical difficulties in their online learning.
All the while, he grieved the loss of his brother, who died two weeks ago of COVID-19.
“The stress level is out of control,” he said as his children beckoned for assistance.
The Trujillos, both longtime flight attendants, are two of more than 2,000 airline workers in Houston who lost their jobs Oct. 1 as the pandemic has decimated the travel industry. This latest fiscal cliff camewhen federal relief for airlines ran out at the end of September, prompting United Airlines and American Airlines to announce sweeping furloughs across the country.
Of the 13,000 people United furloughed across the country, some 1,000 worked in Houston. Its contracted regional carrier, ExpressJet, suspended operations altogether, furloughing about 1,200 workers in Houston, according to its notification to the Texas Workforce Commission. While ExpressJet is shutting down — United selected another regional carrier in its place amid efforts to downsize — it furloughed employees in an effort to leave the door open to a possible return to business.
“They just don’twant to give up (on finding new business) so it’s a furlough at this time,” said Joe Mauro, chairman of the ExpressJet chapter of the Air Line Pilots Association. “It’s just not likely.”
American Airlines furloughed 19,000 people nationally, and it was not clear whether its furloughs affected any workers in Houston. Southwest Airlines, another major carrier in the region, is so far holding firm, promising to hold off on furloughs until at least early 2021, when the financial outlook may look better.
Seeking a lifeline
Airline workers across the country have been lobbying the administration and Congress to approve more payroll support for the industry, union leaders said, so that they may keep additional furloughs at bay and recall workers like the Trujillos.
“Without this kind of help there’s no telling what’s going to happen in the near term,” said Thom McDaniel, an international vice president for the Transport WorkersUnion of America, which represents flight attendants for Southwest Airlines. Southwest employs more than 2,000 people at Hobby Airport, he said.
More payroll support could come in a second round of aid, but Democrats and Republicans have not reached consensus on what shape that relief should take.
An effort to pass legislation to prevent the airline layoffs before the House went into recess was blocked, and Congress isn’t scheduled to return to Washington until after the election. The failure tomove an airline aid pack
age effectively ended the effort until then, barring a deal being passed by unanimous consent while members are away. Leadership could also call members back for votes.
“It’s astonishing that the politics in this countryhave come toa stalemate and the American people aren’t being helped,” said Ken Diaz, president ofUnited Airlines’ Master Executive Council for the Association of Flight Attendants. “Because if this industry goes
down, it’s a domino effect for every other industry in this country. And we haven’t seen the worst of it yet.”
That uncertainty hamstrung many airline workers, who clung to the hope they would not be forced to face an unforgiving job market.
“Until today, I couldn’t really commit to anything because I didn’t know what was going to happen,” Trujillo said Thursday. “Even today there’s still talk of something possibly passing. It’s a difficult situation when I’m having to check my phone every 45 minutes or an hour.”
United announced last month that it planned to furlough 1,349 people in Houston this week pending federal relief, though the company said it was able to reduce that number following an agreement with pilots, landing the number closer to 1,000.
ExpressJet had a large Houston hub before it flew its last flight on Wednesday and furloughed most of its 2,900 workers nationally. Mauro, the pilots union official, said the company had largely moved its employees to the Houston hub during the pandemic, including the 1,400 pilots he represents.
“Without an extension of the payroll support program, the market will be flooded with qualified pilots,” Mauro said, noting some of out-of-work pilots are exploring opportunities in the cargo side of the industry.
The shock of what’s happening left some in denial, Mauro said, but he’s encouraging his members to be realistic.
“I think this is a stark reality check today that this actually is happening, and the next chapter of our careers and lives actually starts today,” he said. “Extension or not, our message to pilots has been go find yourself another job.”
Challenges abound
Landing new work will be a challenge for furloughed aviation workers. David Oeswein of Spring was furloughed from ExpressJet on Thursday after 23 years working as a pilot andinstructor for the company. In recent weeks, he said he’s had to overhaul his résumé to showcase skills that might land him a desk job.
For his part, Trujillo said he started looking for jobs, but there’s not a lot out there that would pay enough to support his family. He’s exploring work through Amazon and FedEx, he said.
“The job market is so small right now,” he said.
His wife, Jessica, took a voluntary leave from United in March, he said, when the pandemic dealt its first blows and airlines asked workers to volunteer to forgo steady paychecks and retain their benefits. He said they figured she could stay home with the kids for six months and help with online learning while safety and financial concerns at airlines resolved themselves.
But that hasn’t happened. He said Jessica was due to return to work this month. Now, he said they fear she will soon max out her unemployment benefits as they head into 2021 out of work.
“This morning, a big concern for us iswhatwe’re going to do for our insurance,” he said on Thursday.“We’re not going to be able to afford those insurance premiums on unemployment.”
Looking back on hiswife’s decision to take leave, Trujillo still felt conflicted. Knowing his brother died of the virus, he said taking the leave was the “right decision, healthwise.”
“Financially,” he said, “not so much.”
“I think this is a stark reality check today that this actually is happening.”
Joe Mauro, of the ExpressJet chapter of the Air Line Pilots Association