Five days after Oakland’s City Council voted to drop a lawsuit against Southwest Airlines, the Oakland airport’s biggest carrier, for allegedly denying workers paid sick leave, Mayor Barbara Lee met with Southwest’s CEO to talk business.
A spokesman for Lee’s office told The Oaklandside that the mayor met virtually with Southwest CEO Robert Jordan and the company’s government affairs staff on Oct. 28 to “discuss partnerships to promote Oakland Airport.”
The meeting is a sign that some city leaders are dramatically changing Oakland’s stance toward the company, America’s third largest airline by passenger numbers.
On Oct. 23, the Oakland City Council voted to dismiss a lawsuit the City Attorney filed in September 2024 over alleged labor law violations. City officials initiated the suit after receiving complaints from Southwest workers that the airline was denying them the right to use earned paid sick leave and was retaliating against workers who tried to use their time-off benefits. The city attorney, which is empowered to enforce Oakland’s minimum wage laws, had settled similar claims with Southwest in 2020, but new complaints prompted the city to sue again.
The city was seeking restitution for transport workers, along with enforcement costs and penalties for the city. It also wanted Southwest to come into compliance with Oakland’s minimum wage and sick leave laws. Southwest denied the claims and was fighting the lawsuit.
Councilmembers who previously spoke with The Oaklandside said their decision to drop the lawsuit had nothing to do with the merits of the case. Instead, Councilmember Charlene Wang said lawmakers were concerned about declining inbound traffic and the possibility that Southwest might leave Oakland. Councilmember Kevin Houston stressed that he was “tired” of the litigation. He also said the council’s decision signaled to the business community that Oakland’s leaders want “to make partnerships.”
These explanations do not sit well with the Transport Workers Union Local 555, which represents Southwest workers and is still in litigation with the carrier over the labor law claims.
On Friday, the union’s president Tony Slavings issued a statement saying, “We are outraged and deeply disturbed by the Oakland City Council’s sudden, unexplained decision to kill its own lawsuit against Southwest Airlines.”
Southwest representatives did not respond to an interview request.
Slavings criticized councilmembers for offering “contradictory explanations” for why they dismissed the lawsuit, and raised alarm at the prospect of “backroom meals and deals.”
“It unmistakably creates the appearance that political convenience was chosen over worker protection,” Slavings wrote. “I’ll say what workers across Oakland are already thinking: This decision looks like abandonment. And it looks like appeasement.”
The mayor’s staff reached out to Southwest in September to arrange the meeting, a spokesperson said. The spokesperson added that Lee did not have a vote in the decision to terminate the lawsuit.
The Port Commission, which oversees the airport, previously told The Oaklandside that it contacted Southwest and city officials to encourage them to find a solution to the lawsuit.
The port has strong incentives to maintain a good relationship with Southwest, which as of 2022 was the airport’s largest airline by passengers and seats and offers, according to an aviation forecast report. Travel at Oakland’s airport suffered during the pandemic and its recovery has been uncertain, according to reports published by the Port. After a drop off in 2020, Oakland’s passenger volume increased between 2021 and 2023. But the airport experienced a decline in 2024 that has continued into 2025. According to the latest Port report, the airport had 9.7 million passengers between August 2024 and July 2025. This is 13.6% lower than the same period between 2023 and 2024.
This trend could be a problem for the airport, which is pursuing a plan to add 16 new passenger gates and upgrade facilities. The Port argued in an environmental impact report that this expansion is necessary to accommodate projected increase in passengers “due to market-based demand.”
“It is frustrating to see Oakland public officials succumbing to their strong-arm tactics, with City Councilmembers putting Southwest’s interests ahead of the rights of airport workers by cancelling the labor lawsuit,” said David Foecke, a member of a group called Stop OAK Expansion Coalition that is opposed to expanding the airport.
According to Foecke, Southwest has been threatening to leave Oakland for years unless officials do their bidding. The rumor about the airline leaving has periodically bubbled up in Oakland. In September 2023, Bishop George Matthews told attendees at a public safety forum at Genesis Worship Center that Southwest was considering leaving Oakland. Matthews said he heard this from a city councilmember who he didn’t name. At the time, Southwest told The Oaklandside it remains committed to Oakland.
Focke said it’s also frustrating to see the Port Commission put Southwest’s priorities ahead of the health of East Oakland residents by greenlighting the proposed expansion of the airport without conducting a health study, as requested by Alameda County officials.
“It is time for our representatives to call Southwest’s bluff and stand up for the rights of Oakland workers and the health of Oakland citizens,” Foecke said.
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