City of Chicago Requires Airport Service Providers to Enter into Labor Peace Agreements

Executive Summary: As of July 1, 2018, the City of Chicago, as owner and operator of Chicago O’Hare International Airport and Chicago Midway International Airport (the “Airports”), will require that certain users of the Airports enter into a “labor peace agreement” with labor organizations as a condition of their license to provide services at the Airports. The requirement is the result of a recent amendment to Municipal Code Section 2-20-020 (the “2017 Ordinance”) which requires companies that provide baggage handling, passenger services, aircraft cleaning, and other similar services to airline carriers (“Service Providers”) to enter into these agreements in exchange for unions agreeing not to economically interfere with the Service Providers. While the stated purpose behind labor peace ordinances is to promote labor harmony and preclude actions that disrupt the provision of services to the public, they generally make it easier for unions to organize employees, which can have a significant impact on businesses subject to such ordinances.