AFA-CWA International President Patricia Friend Honored for Lifetime Achievement

LAS VEGAS, April 29 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Association of Flight Attendants-CWA (AFA-CWA) Board of Directors presented President Pat Friend with the Ada Brown Greenfield Lifetime Achievement Award. President Friend received the distinct honor, awarded only twice before and named after a founder of the union, for her contributions to the advancement of flight attendants and AFA-CWA's mission.

"President Friend has been a role model and an inspiration to countless colleagues through her years of work for AFA-CWA," said the AFA-CWA Board of Directors at their annual meeting. "Pat Friend serves as a living testament to the power of what we can achieve through the labor movement. What she has helped accomplish for our profession is hard to quantify, but without her incredible endurance and efforts, flight attendants would likely still be suffering under unfair and unjust airline employee policies."

A United flight attendant since 1966, Friend was elected as International President in 1995 and will step down from her AFA-CWA position on December 31, 2010. Under her leadership, AFA-CWA has fought for and won whistleblower protections for aviation employees, increased penalties for passengers who interfere with crewmember duties, a smoking ban on international flights, an extension of the Family and Medical Leave Act to cover all flight crew members, seniority protections for flight attendants in the event of a merger, and opened the door for occupational safety and health protections for all flight attendants.

"Pat Friend's contributions to the flight attendant profession will never be forgotten. She has been a pioneer in women's and minority rights over the years and has worked tirelessly to advance the lives of flight attendants across the globe. Years from now, when people talk about how the flight attendant profession has transformed and evolved, Pat Friend's name will be included in that conversation. Indelibly and personally, she has bettered the lives of thousands of flight attendants who have been able to take advantage of the many advancements AFA-CWA achieved under her leadership," said the Board.

For over 60 years, the Association of Flight Attendants has been serving as the voice for flight attendants in the workplace, in the aviation industry, in the media and on Capitol Hill.  More than 50,000 flight attendants at 21 airlines come together to form AFA-CWA, the world's largest flight attendant union. AFA is part of the 700,000-member strong Communications Workers of America (CWA), AFL-CIO. Visit us at www.afanet.org. 

SOURCE Association of Flight Attendants-CWA (AFA-CWA)