Make sure passengers' luggage arrives when they doHandlers sort baggage according to its destination tagYou have to work in all kinds of weatherHigh school combined with on-the-job training is the most common
career path
A baggage handler in Dallas got an unexpected trip to Mexico recently.
While he was loading luggage for the flight, the handler somehow got stuck
in the pressurized cargo hold. He didn't get out until the plane landed in
Mexico a few hours later -- thankfully, he was fine.
Question: What's a vacation without your suitcase? Answer: Not much fun
if you're thousands of miles from home. That's why airlines want to make sure
your luggage arrives when you do. Baggage handlers are the people who get
this job done.
Baggage handlers sort baggage according to its destination tag. They also
load cargo containers on and off planes. Some also do cabin preparation and
cabin grooming. These workers are called "station attendants."
With airlines moving thousands of bags every day, things do occasionally
get misdirected. Some baggage handlers deal with customer complaints about
lost luggage and help trace the missing bags. These workers are called "baggage
agents."
Within airlines, workers can move from being a station attendant to being
a baggage agent. Moving from the outside jobs to the inside jobs, even in
the baggage sorting area, usually takes several years of seniority.
Baggage agents may begin their career on the ramp or in some other area
of customer relations with an airline.
Lisa Tecdeschi, a baggage service agent for an airline in Atlanta, says
she worked in about six different areas before bidding on a job as a baggage
agent.
Whether they're on the ramp or in front of passengers, baggage handlers
require a comprehensive knowledge of airline codes and flight destinations.
That knowledge comes through on-the-job training and experience.
Since planes fly in all kinds of weather, station attendants have to work
in all kinds of weather. Guy Crane, an attendant in Portland, Oregon, says
he's worked in snow, sleet and even 64 percent humidity (that's pretty clammy!)
Baggage handlers are required to do some lifting, so it's important to
be physically strong. For that reason, the career tends to appeal more to
men than women.
Some unionized baggage handlers work shifts between eight and 11 hours
long in a compressed workweek. That means employees may work four days on
and then have three days off.
Baggage handlers work for airlines at airports across North America and
the world. Many are unionized.
For example, the International Association of Machinists (IAM) is the union
representing employees working with baggage for United Airlines, American
Airlines, Alaska Airlines and Air Canada.
The Occupational Outlook Handbook groups baggage handlers in the category
of handlers, equipment cleaners, helpers and laborers. In the United States,
5.1 million people work in those fields, according to the OOH 1998 figures.
Workers in these areas made an average hourly wage of $6.99. The low was
$5.54 and the high was $8.65, according to 1998 OOH figures.
However, according to the Airline Employment Assistance Corporation, baggage
handlers earn $14,500 to $31,200, based on 1999 figures.
Employment opportunities are expected to increase at an average rate --
between 10 and 20 percent -- through 2008, reports the OOH. Keep in mind that
these projections don't take recent events or the current economic climate
into account.
There are regular openings in this field at the entry level. New workers
replace those who have advanced to other jobs. Terry Tiberghien says there's
not a lot of turnover in unionized staff. "We make a decent wage and excellent
benefits."
Benefits typically include medical, dental and flying points.
RegionAverage Annual EarningsAverage Hourly EarningsU.S. National$36,770$17.68RegionOutlook2023 Workforce2023 to 2033 Growth RateU.S. NationalStable7,105,7004%
So are you ready to pack your bags and become a baggage handler? Those
in the field say the first thing to do is contact the airlines. They can tell
you if they're hiring and how to apply.
The minimum educational level is high school, but many baggage handlers
say it's tough to get hired right out of high school. The airlines like to
see some post-secondary education in either an academic or vocational field.
Baggage service agent Lisa Tedeschi has a degree in marketing.
Training is done on the job by the employer. Some airlines contract out
their training to an agency called the International Air Transport Association.
It provides courses specifically in cargo handling to workers of its member
airlines.
Here's a sampling of related training:
International Air Transport Association
Cargo
5200 Blue Lagoon Dr., Ste. 690
Miami
,
FL
33126
USA
Internet
:
http://www.iata.org/atdi/courses_cargo.asp?code=4
Associations
Airlines for America
Internet
:
https://www.airlines.org/
International Air Transport Association
Internet
:
http://www.iata.org/
International Air Cargo Association
Internet
:
http://www.tiaca.org/
Links
Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics
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