Philly Airport Strike Didn’t Slow Operations, Officials Say

Airport officials say they don't expect any disruptions moving forward.

PHL | flickr

PHL | flickr

On Tuesday, hundreds of Philadelphia airport workers and supporters took to the airport’s departure road to demand higher wages and benefits.

Though the group of workers blocked several lanes of traffic from terminals A through F and occupied the arrivals level at various moments of the demonstration, airport officials, in a statement given to Philadelphia magazine, stated that “PHL experienced no impacts on operations during the protest today.”

During the demonstration, airport officials directed passengers to use the arrivals road to access ticket counters and TSA screening, the statement said.

The statement also noted that police were continually monitoring the strike, and that airport officials, as of Tuesday afternoon, had no confirmation on the number of subcontracted employees participating in the strike.

Workers voted last week to strike during the Democratic National Convention, which will run from July 25th to July 28th. Following Tuesday’s demonstration, workers got back to work, and local union officials say today’s demonstration is a preview of what will happen next week, though a date for next week’s strike hasn’t been specified.

“Moving forward, we don’t anticipate any disruptions,” the airport’s statement said, but airport officials did not immediately comment on whether they are making preparations to offset possible setbacks from a strike next week.

Editor’s note: This story has been updated to clarify that some of the demonstrators were supporters. 

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