The aviation industry has a labor shortage that goes way beyond pilots. Since the resurgence of travel following a slump during the COVID-19 pandemic, airlines and airports have tried aggressively hiring and reshaping training programs to attract talent, but they are still catching up after “revenge travel“ took off in 2022 and continues to soar this year.
Strikes by aviation employees in parts of Europe have highlighted the sector’s difficult working conditions, including low pay and long shifts, often required of workers. These have threatened to impact airport operations in the past and have brought the needs of airport support staff to the forefront. At a time when aviation workers are in high demand and yet, increasingly becoming harder to find and retain, employers in aviation are starting to offer unusual perks in the hopes of luring workers. How about a free iPhone, car, or on-site childcare services?
“If you want people to work crazy shifts, in the middle of the night, in the middle of the day, you need to be able to accommodate their family life too,” Thomas Romig, vice president at trade group Airports Council International (ACI World), told Reuters about services like childcare being offered to aviation employees. “Airports are taking more actions to try and recruit, retain and train [or] upskill workers.”
The Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport is working on building a childcare facility within the airport premises. The airport began offering scholarships to support employees’ families in providing childcare in 2020.
“The program is designed to help provide safe, quality, and affordable childcare so that airport workers are able to return to work and provide options for their children in the neighborhoods where they work or live,” a representative from Sky Harbor told Fortune.
Additionally, the city of Phoenix has invested $1 million to build a childcare center next to the airport, according to Reuters.
Cincinnati’s airport is reportedly considering similar services either inside or proximate to the airport to encourage more employees to work in aviation. Airports in Los Angeles and San Francisco already have daycare provisions. The San Francisco airport is also considering providing more benefits in the form of subsidized public transportation and free shuttle services.
A tight labor market and record-low unemployment rates have made hiring for low-skilled jobs more competitive, especially against large recruiters like Amazon. In aviation, the odd working hours can be an added complication for employees with families. So perks have increasingly become an essential part of employee retention amid a changing dynamic in the workplace. Employers across industries have been scrambling to implement wellness, skill development, and other benefits to draw the interest of more workers.
In the case of Unifi, an aviation service provider that works with Delta Air Lines, Alaska Airlines, JetBlue, and others, benefits have come in the form of free iPhones and brand-new cars. Unifi’s staff turnover is still higher than in pre-pandemic years, and the costs to hire new workers have risen by 60%. The company has been rolling out incentive programs to keep its workers by recognizing their performance by offering smartphones and cars as rewards. It is also considering other creative ways to engage its current and prospective staff.
“One of the biggest incentives we offer are our flight benefits,” a spokesperson from Unifi told Fortune. “People who work in aviation do so in part because they love to travel and offering our employees flight benefits–commonly knowns as non-revenue travel in the industry–is a top benefit and perk for much of our staff.”
Representatives at ACI World did not immediately respond to Fortune’s request for comment.
Update, February 27, 2023: This article has been updated with comments from Unifi.
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