The new rule takes effect in about 30 days and increases to 10 consecutive hours, from nine hours under previous rules, the required rest period between trips for flight attendants, the U.S. Department of Transportation's Federal Aviation Administration said on Tuesday in a statement."Flight attendants, like all essential transportation workers, work hard every day to keep the traveling public safe, and we owe them our full support," Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said in the statement.Flight crew unions have pushed for the additional rest time, saying flight attendants wearied by the pandemic are tired and overworked after working shifts as long as 14 hours.The FAA late last year opened public comment on the proposed regulatory shift that was first approved by Congress in 2018, but not implemented during the Trump administration.Flight attendants "need this rest more than ever in the most difficult time to work our jobs in the history of aviation," stated Nelson, whose union represents nearly 50,000 flight attendants at 19 airlines."