FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
202/628-9262
Washington, D.C. – The following statement was issued today by Edward Wytkind, president of the Transportation Trades Department, AFL-CIO (TTD), in response to the Administration’s supplemental proposed rule on the foreign control of U.S. airlines.
“The supplemental proposed rule unveiled yesterday by the Department of Transportation changes very little: the rule still permits foreign interests to control U.S. airlines in violation of U.S. law.
This latest rendition of what has been a wildly unpopular regulatory proposal is a thinly veiled attempt to impose controversial changes in aviation policy that Congress has rejected repeatedly. In fact, in the 2003 Federal Aviation Administration reauthorization legislation Congress reaffirmed that “actual control” of U.S. airlines must remain in the hands of U.S. citizens.
But the Administration isn’t listening. Nothing in the latest proposal adequately responds to congressional criticism that the rule runs afoul of the law, poses significant security and safety risks, threatens good American jobs, and undermines the CRAF program, which is relied upon by our military for the transport of personnel and equipment during wars and conflicts.
This latest proposal also gives short shrift to the legitimate concerns of airline employees as this Administration continues to ignore the interests of workers who see this proposal as a direct threat to their jobs and livelihoods. Further, our government should stop pandering to the European Union in its obsessive drive to reach a new US-EU aviation services pact. While we support responsible efforts to expand U.S. aviation opportunities abroad, the EU should be told that its heavy-handed tactic of holding the US-EU agreement hostage to changes in foreign control rules is unacceptable and will not be tolerated.
Congress should ignore this latest act of regulatory gimmickry and finish the work it has started by passing legislation that bars this proposed from being finalized.”
TTD represents 31 member unions in the aviation, rail, transit, trucking, highway, longshore, maritime and related industries. For more information, visit www.ttd.org.
