Workers strike at Sea-Tac claiming unsafe conditions
Oct 3, 2012, 5:58 AM | Updated: 5:22 pm
The people who refuel Alaska Airlines' planes at Sea-Tac Airport are threatening to walk off the job over safety concerns. (KIRO Radio/Kim Shepard)
(KIRO Radio/Kim Shepard)
The people who refuel Alaska Airlines’ planes at Sea-Tac Airport are walking off the job over safety concerns.
The non-union workers claim their equipment is unsafe, and that they are retaliated against when they raise the issue to their employer ASIG.
The refuelers claim Alex Popescu was suspended after raising the issue of safety to his superiors.
In August, Popescu testified before the Port of Seattle and showed photos of faulty equipment that affect the safety of ASIG workers. On September 12, he reported broken equipment on a truck he was supposed to drive. His coplaints included refueling trucks with bad brakes, leaky hoses and poorly maintained ladders.
Workers then say Popescu was suspended indefinitely and hasn’t been allowed back to work since.
“It’s very serious when you have people that are handling 5,000 gallons of jet fuel, and they feel like their equipment is unsafe and they do not feel like they have the opportunity to correct that safety,” said Thea Levkovitz of Working Washington.
Alaska Airlines says they have a contingency plan in place for when refuelers strike, and don’t anticipate any delays.
