NEW YORK (Reuters) - Airport workers at seven of the busiest U.S. hubs plan to strike beginning Wednesday night over what they say are bad wages and threats against unionizing. 
 
 Loadmasters work at bringing pallets aboard a 747 aircraft at New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport September 20, 2014. REUTERS/Carlo Allegri 
 
 Some 2,000 plane cleaners, baggage handlers and other workers will strike at New York’s Kennedy and LaGuardia airports, as well as Newark Liberty, Chicago O’Hare, Boston, Philadelphia and Fort Lauderdale, the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) told Reuters. 
 
 The walkout, which has yet to be announced publicly, comes just before air travel picks up for the Thanksgiving holiday. It was not immediately clear if the action would cause flight delays because airlines often have backup plans to avert disruptions. 
 
 The strikers work for companies that U.S. airlines contract for some airport operations. That means pilots, flight attendants and in-house baggage handlers are not taking part in the action. 
 
 The SEIU, which seeks to unionize these workers, declined to name their employers in advance of the strike so the companies could not prevent it or threaten retaliation. 
 
 “We don’t receive enough money to pay the rent,” said Damaso Mejia, a worker involved with the SEIU who cleans and checks plane interiors for suspicious objects at New York Kennedy for $10.10 an hour. 
 
 He said he will start working a second job next month and will log 18-hour days to supplement his income. 
 
 The walkout has been in the works since the SEIU sponsored a convention in Washington a month ago for airport workers to discuss their concerns. The SEIU said some workers perceived threats against organizing. 
 
 U.S. Senator Chuck Schumer and several congressmen will attend a news conference in Washington on Thursday to garner support for $15 hourly wages, the union said. Rallies are to take place at other U.S. airports. 
 
 On Tuesday the SEIU endorsed Democratic presidential front-runner Hillary Clinton for the November 2016 election. Clinton said last month in a letter to the SEIU, seen by Reuters, that “airport jobs should be good jobs - and together, we can make sure they are.” 
 
 Plans by some New York airport workers to strike in July, supported by the SEIU, were called off after a last-minute agreement with their employer Command Security Corp. 
 
 (The story was refiled to fix a name misspelling in paragraph 6) ||||| 
 
 Robin Wilson leads chanting as airport workers and supporters from around the world rally for better wages in Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport last month.. Workers in DC are the latest to join a national campaign for better wages for contracting workers at airports across the world. (Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post) 
 
 This post has been updated. 
 
 Airport workers at seven of the busiest U.S. airports are going on strike Wednesday night to protest what they say are poor working conditions and retaliation for unionizing. 
 
 More than 2,000 workers, including cleaners, wheelchair attendants, and baggage handlers plan to strike at Fort Lauderdale, Philadelphia, Boston, Chicago O’Hare, Newark Liberty and New York’s Kennedy and LaGuardia airports, the Service Employees International Union said. 
 
 It’s unclear how the action might impact operations. We’re checking with airports and will update this post as soon as we hear back. 
 
 The walkout is part of a growing national campaign for a $15-an-hour minimum wage for the lowest-paid airport workers who keep terminals and plane cabins clean, move bags and transport people with disabilities. They work for contractors that serve all major airlines, and some of them are making hourly salaries as low as $6.75, union leaders say. 
 
 “Despite working fulltime, they cannot afford to rent a room for themselves let alone take care of their families,” said Marc Goumbri, an SEIU spokesman with the workers campaign. “The workers have a right to get together under federal law and fight for better working conditions, but when they do so they face retaliation from the contractors.” 
 
 [Washington-area airport workers join fight for $15-an-hour minimum wage] 
 
 It is unclear how the strike, expected to start around 7:30 p.m. and extend until Thursday, will impact airport operations. It comes, however, just days before one of the busiest air travel weeks. As many as 3.6 million Americans are expected to travel for the Thanksgiving holiday, according to AAA estimates. 
 
 Greg Meyer, an spokesman for Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport, said any actions Wednesday night are not likely to significantly impact service, noting that business is slow at night. 
 
 “This is not going to shut down the airport,” he said. “This is not going to cause the airlines to stop flying.” 
 
 When workers have gone on strike in the past it has impacted services such as wheelchair assistance and those handling bags at the curb. But he said, “the airlines bring in additional employees and they take over those responsibilities. You still have folks that are disabled that need assistance getting from the curb to the gate so the service has to be provided.” 
 
 Solidarity actions are also planned for Thursday in Los Angeles, Minneapolis and Portland, Ore. In Washington, airport workers will join several members of Congress at a morning news conference in support of the $15 hourly wage. 
 
 Once contracted directly with airlines or airports, most of these service jobs are now outsourced to companies that compete for the contracts. Some studies suggest that the growing trend has led to poorer working conditions and lower wages. 
 
 Airport workers across the U.S. have held protests, marches and rallies over the past three years, calling for better pay and benefits. Some workers say the low wages force them to work two or three jobs to sustain their families.
– Tired of being underpaid and threatened by their employers, more than 2,000 baggage handlers, cleaners, and wheelchair attendants at seven of the busiest airports in the US will go on strike Wednesday night, the Washington Post reports. "We don't receive enough money to pay the rent," Damaso Mejia, a worker who cleans and checks plane interiors for suspicious objects, tells Reuters. The Post reports the strike will involve workers at Kennedy, LaGuardia, Newark Liberty, Fort Lauderdale, Boston, Philadelphia, and O'Hare and is scheduled to last through Thursday. It's unclear if the strike will result in flight delays ahead of the busy Thanksgiving travel week, as airlines typically have plans to keep things running smoothly during strikes, according to Reuters. The striking workers aren't employed directly by the airports, rather they work for companies that compete against each other for airport contracts, Reuters reports. According to the Post, some of the workers are paid as little as $6.75 per hour and hold two or three jobs to support their families. And the Service Employees International Union tells Reuters some workers have been threatened over plans to organize. “Despite working fulltime, they cannot afford to rent a room for themselves let alone take care of their families,” the Post quotes an SEIU spokesperson. “The workers have a right to get together under federal law and fight for better working conditions.” The strike is part of a national effort for a $15 minimum wage for airport workers.