For many consumers the time between a plane landing and boarding for the next flight may seem like an eternity. But for the men and women tasked with cleaning the cabin of said plane, the short time you are left waiting might not actually be enough to adequately and safely get the job done. It’s health and safety concerns such as those that led to more than 200 cabin cleaners to go on a 24-hour strike at New York’s LaGuardia Airport Wednesday night.

The Associated Press reports that nearly 200 Air Serve employees have set up picket lines in an attempt to raise awareness about the health and safety issues they face on the job.

At the crux of the protest is the workers’ claims that they are often tasked with cleaning up blood and vomit while not equipped with appropriate protective gear.

Among their concerns is exposure to diseases, such as Ebola.

Additionally, the workers say the ability to thoroughly clean an airplane has been stunted. The group says the number of cabin cleaners per job has been reduced by up to half and that the time they are allotted to clean the cabin has shrunk significantly from about 45 minutes to as little as 5 minutes.

The Associated Press reports that it is unclear whether Air Serv was using replacement workers during the employees’ strike.

Plane cleaners strike at 1 NYC airport terminal [The Associated Press]

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