May 12--Southwest pilots may have the freedom of the skies, but they don't have the freedom to say whatever they want at Midway Airport.
At least not on a billboard, according to City Hall, which has barred the Southwest Airlines Pilots' Association from using airport advertising to complain about pilots' stagnant wages.
So now the pilots are suing the city of Chicago, saying its refusal to allow a billboard at Midway in advance of Southwest's May 18 shareholders meeting in Chicago is an unconstitutional restriction on their First Amendment rights.
While the city says its decision to ban the billboard was based on guidelines enacted last summer that preclude the display of "all political and public issue advertising" at O'Hare and Midway airports, the pilots union says it was told the ad was banned because the city found it "offensive" and worried what Southwest would think.
"This case represents a classic instance where a governmental entity is seeking to restrict speech in violation of the First Amendment because it disagrees with the viewpoint of the speaker," the lawsuit alleges.
Depicting a uniformed pilot holding a sign that reads "Shareholder returns: $3.1 billion; Pilot raises: $0" beside the legend "The Pilots of SWAPA welcome Southwest shareholders to Chicago," the ad was rejected twice by the Chicago Department of Aviation, once in a subtly modified version, according to the suit.
The pilots union is attempting to convince U.S. District Judge Virginia Kendall to issue a temporary restraining order that would permit the billboard to be displayed.
But in arguing against the union, lawyers for the city said they consistently enforced the ban on political advertising over the last year.
The guidelines were enacted after animal rights activists People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals in 2014 bought billboard space at O'Hare International Airport to protest Air France's treatment of monkeys, and are designed to avoid any advertising "that is offensive or controversial," to "maximize revenue for supporting airport operations," and to avoid the implication that the city or the Chicago Department of Aviation "endorses (any) . . . message displayed," lawyers for the city wrote in a response to the lawsuit.
"Contrary to SWAPA's assertions, its proposed advertisement advocating for raises for its member pilots was not rejected by the Chicago Department of Aviation because of disagreement with SWAPA's viewpoint," the response states.
The pilots say they have not had an "acceptable" contract since 2012 and that they have not had a raise since 2011. They are in federal mediation with the airline's management and plan to protest at the shareholders meeting.
Southwest declined to comment on the suit.
The judge has yet to rule.
kjanssen@tribpub.com
