Sara Nelson Won't Stop Fighting for Flight Attendants
Women Who Travel | Condé Nast Traveler
Condé Nast Traveler
4.4 • 636 Ratings
🗓️ 29 July 2020
⏱️ 37 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
You probably first heard Sara Nelson's name in early 2019 when she called for a general strike, leading to an abrupt end to the extended government shutdown. Now, the international president of the Association of Flight Attendants, CWA, is fighting something completely different: a pandemic, as well as imminent layoffs for airline workers. We caught up with Sara, named "the world's most powerful flight attendant" by the New York Times, to chat about how she got her start as a United flight attendant, why she joined the union, and what challenges the AFA-CWA faces today.
Read a full transcription of the episode here: https://www.cntraveler.com/story/sara-nelson-wont-stop-fighting-for-flight-attendants-women-who-travel-podcast
Follow Sara: @flyingwithsara
Follow Lale: @lalehannah
Follow Meredith: @ohheytheremere
Follow Women Who Travel: @womenwhotravel
Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices
Transcript
Click on a timestamp to play from that location
| 0:00.0 | Hi everyone, it's Meredith. This past Monday, the TSA screened more than 2 million passengers, |
| 0:04.6 | down just 16% from this time in 2019. As travelers in the U.S. are returning to the skies, |
| 0:10.2 | flight attendants are more important than ever, enforcing masking rules and ensuring everyone's |
| 0:14.5 | safety on board. But not everyone is respecting their roles, with some airlines even considering |
| 0:19.1 | getting rid of in-flight alcohol sales for good |
| 0:21.5 | amid rising in-flight altercations. Last summer, Lolley and I talked with Sarah Nelson, international |
| 0:26.7 | president of the Association of Flight Attendants, CWA, about her path to becoming a flight attendant |
| 0:32.0 | and why they've been such a vital force during the pandemic. This week, we're resharing this |
| 0:36.7 | episode as a reminder to be particularly |
| 0:38.7 | respectful on your next flight. And before I pass it off to my past self, updates on a few |
| 0:43.6 | points Sarah makes in the episode. First, it's now required by a federal mandate that all passengers |
| 0:48.5 | must wear masks in airports and on airplanes regardless of vaccination status. And federal aid meant to protect |
| 0:55.2 | airline workers like flight attendants, pilots, and ramp employees has been extended until |
| 0:59.6 | September 30th, 2021, staving off furloughs, at least for now. Okay, let's get into the episode. |
| 1:10.6 | Hi, and welcome to Women Who Travel, a podcast from Connie Nass Traveler. |
| 1:14.2 | I'm Meredith Carey, and with me, as always, is my co-host, Sala Erica Koglou. |
| 1:18.5 | Hi. |
| 1:19.4 | This week, we are absolutely thrilled to be joined by Sarah Nelson, international president |
| 1:23.4 | of the Association of Flight Attendance, CWA, a union that represents nearly 50,000 flight |
| 1:28.5 | attendants at 20 airlines. You probably saw her or heard her speak during the government |
| 1:33.7 | shutdown of 2019 when she urged the aviation industry to strike, which ultimately pushed |
| 1:38.3 | the U.S. government to work out a deal to reopen. It is an absolute honor to have you join us. |
... |
Please login to see the full transcript.
Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from Condé Nast Traveler, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.
Generated transcripts are the property of Condé Nast Traveler and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.
Copyright © Tapesearch 2025.