Rep. Rick Larsen, WA-02, today voted to uphold workers’ rights through several amendments to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) reauthorization bill. Larsen took the votes during the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee markup of H.R. 4441, the Aviation Innovation, Reform, and Reauthorization Act of 2016.

“A strong economic foundation for our workers requires fair and secure workplaces. That is why I voted today to increase the amount of rest that flight attendants receive to a minimum of 10 hours, because the well-being and safety of crew members depends on getting enough rest. And I fought successfully against a threat to the Davis-Bacon Act, which has protected wages for middle class families for decades.

“Despite the many positive reforms included in this bill that will support a strong aviation system and its workers, I remain concerned about the proposal to hand over our airspace to private control. Running a science experiment with the most complex airspace in the world comes with a lot of risk, including the uncertain futures of thousands of workers at FAA. While the committee worked through a lot of important issues today, I remain completely unsatisfied with the ATC privatization proposal,” Larsen said.

Larsen voted on several amendments to protect workers, including:

• Strike ATC privatization and make targeted reforms to FAA procurement and personnel. (Larsen voted yes; amendment failed)
• Require a minimum of 10-hour rest periods for flight attendants, as well as fatigue risk management plans. (Larsen voted yes; amendment passed)
• Provide airline ticket and gate agents with the same legal protections from assault as flight attendants and flight crews. (Larsen voted yes; amendment passed as part of a larger package)
• Raise the Davis Bacon threshold for any airport development project to $150,000. (Larsen voted no; amendment failed)
• Strike the preemption of state meal and rest break laws for truck drivers. (Larsen voted yes; amendment failed)

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