Independent Union of Flight Attendants Records
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Abstract
The Independent Union of Flight Attendants was formed in 1976 by flight attendants at Pan American Airlines who were dissatisfied with their working conditions and their representation by the Transport Workers Union of America. This collection includes correspondence, by-laws, minutes, contracts, newsletters, and printed material documenting the decertification of the TWU, formation of the IUFA, collective bargaining agreements with Pan American Airlines, and grievance cases from 1976 to 1991. It also contains files predating the formation of IUFA pertaining to flight attendants' concerns within TWU.
Historical/Biographical Note
In the mid-1970s, flight attendants at Pan American Airways (PAA) became dissatisfied with both their working conditions and their representation by the Transport Workers Union of America. In 1976, the flight attendants voted to decertify the TWU and form a new union, the Independent Union of Flight Attendants. Mary Ellen King served as the union's first president, and Alice Flynn as its vice president. Star Hesse, a flight attendant, got involved with IUFA in the late 1970s and became a section chairperson, negotiating contracts for the IUFA. In 1985, the flight attendants narrowly averted a walkout in support of striking TWU members. The IUFA dissolved when Pan American Airlines folded in 1991.
Issues of intense concern to the flight attendants, as reflected in their bargaining and grievance files and newsletters, were scheduling and seniority, overtime work, regulations on appearance and personal behavior and in-flight working conditions.
Arrangement
Arranged alphabetically.
The files are grouped into 1 series:
Missing Title
- I, General Files, 1964-1991
Scope and Content Note
The collection contains correspondence, by-laws, minutes, contracts, newsletters, and printed material documenting the decertification of the TWU, formation of the IUFA, collective bargaining agreements with Pan American Airways, and grievance cases from 1976 to 1991. In addition, it contains files predating the formation of IUFA pertaining to flight attendants' concerns within TWU.
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Conditions Governing Access
Materials are open without restrictions.
Conditions Governing Use
Copyright (or related rights to publicity and privacy) for materials in this collection, created by the Independent Union of Flight Attendants was not transferred to New York University. Permission to use materials must be secured from the copyright holder.
Preferred Citation
Published citations should take the following form:
Identification of item, date; Collection name; Collection number; box number; folder number;
Tamiment Library/Robert F. Wagner Labor Archives
Elmer Holmes Bobst Library
70 Washington Square South
New York, NY 10012, New York University Libraries.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Donated by Star Hesse, 1992. The accession number associated with this gift is 1992.004.
The accession number NPA.2005.207 is also associated with this collection.
Audiovisual Access Policies and Procedures
Audiovisual materials have not been preserved and may not be available to researchers. Materials not yet digitized will need to have access copies made before they can be used. To request an access copy, or if you are unsure if an item has been digitized, please contact tamiment.wagner@nyu.edu, (212) 998-2630 with the collection name, collection number, and a description of the item(s) requested. A staff member will respond to you with further information.
