We look forward to seeing you there.
In Solidarity,
Terry, Jake, Adam, Melinda and Megan
Association of Flight Attendants-CWA Alaska Airlines Master Executive Council
We look forward to seeing you there.
In Solidarity,
Terry, Jake, Adam, Melinda and Megan
Our Annual Benefits Enrollment Starts today! This year the enrollment period is from October 29th – November 14th. This is your once-a-year opportunity to choose the right coverage for you and your family. Learn more and enroll at http://myalaskabenefits.com. If you want to talk with someone about your options, you can call your Benefits Center at 1-844-231-3476.
Our AFA Benefits Committee is planning base sits in the Inflight office to provide additional assistance. The dates and times are:
You can always reach out to one of your Seattle AFA Benefits Committee Members if you have additional questions. http://afaalaska.org/sea/committees.
In Solidarity,
Your Council #19 Benefits Committee and Council #19 Officers: Terry, Jake, Adam, Melinda and Megan.
October Base Update
Council #19 – Seattle
Local Council Meeting:
WHEN: November 12th, 1-5PM
WHERE: Sea Tac Office Complex – South Tower (the same building as 13 Coins), Lower Level, Earhart Room. Parking is behind the building. Bring your ticket with you and we will validate.
AGENDA: Officer and Committee Reports – bring your questions
Informational TidBits:
Annual Benefits Enrollment:
Annual Enrollment will open for additions and changes on October 19, 2018, for changes to take effect on January 1, 2019. There are new benefits available. The AFA Benefits Committee will be conducting Base Sits in Inflight if you have questions, or need assistance. All changes and additions to your current benefits will be completed online through the Benefits Portal. As a reminder, since Short Term Disability coverage is offset by Social Security, if you are receiving your own Social Security benefits, it makes sense to discontinue supplemental Short Term Disability coverage. We will send out base sit schedules, later this week.
November Scheduling Issue:
Most of you are aware, or will undoubtedly hear about, the problem with some pairings not being entered by the company into the NavTech program for bidding. We did not find out about this until Friday, October 12th. Bids had already been awarded.
There were more than 1,200 single segments, which were to have been single positions (D positions). In addition to the segments not having been awarded, nor bid for, no hotels had been assigned for the pairings that were created after the fact. Since it was too late on Friday to reach out hotel vendor (API) we were made aware that it was likely that hotels would not be assigned until ‘some time’ on Monday, October 15th.
If a re-bid were to have occurred, it could not have begun prior to October 16th. This would mean that it would have been closed on October 21st, with awards final no earlier than October 23rd. It would have been October 25th before trading or open time pick-ups could begin.
In Seattle, there are 148 of these pairings (not bid lines, but individual pairings). All but a few only operate on one date. The pairings will be placed into open time for trading or pick up. If the stay in open time, they will be assigned to reserves or offered as premium trips.
Our current base size is 2,317 active Flight Attendants. After weighing all available information, Council 19 decided that due to the late notice and the fact that we’re bidding for a holiday month, this was a terrible time for delayed open time and trading to occur. Further, we considered the likelihood that there would be those who were unavailable and did not hear about the rebid. Since this is unprecedented, those on vacation would have had no idea that this was going on.
We were torn between the clear contractual violation, and the effect a delay of this magnitude would have on our base. After much discussion, the MEC voted NOT to have a re-bid. This was not an easy nor a unanimous decision. This was truly a ‘rock and a hard place’ situation for your officers. I am sure that this will be unpopular with some, just as a rebid with all associated delays would have been.
Are you “Connected”?
AFA Council 19 Website: http://afaalaska.org/sea
AFA Council 19 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AFA-Council-19-Seattle-538630496190284/
AFA Text Alerts: https://www.remind.com/join/sea19
AFA Reserve only Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/afacouncil19reserve/
In Solidarity,
Terry, Jake, Adam, Melinda and Megan
Flight Attendants Cheer 10 Hours Rest, No Calls or Knives on Planes, Air Quality Initiative, and Numerous Other Safety Priorities in FAA Reauthorization Bill
Washington, DC — The 50,000 Flight Attendants at 20 airlines represented by the Association of Flight Attendants–CWA, AFL-CIO (AFA), today cheered the passage of a five-year FAA Reauthorization Bill including a 10 hour minimum rest provision to combat Flight Attendant fatigue. The bill includes more Flight Attendant safety priorities including forever banning knives on planes, no voice calls on planes, and extending the smoking ban to e-cigarettes. AFA International President Sara Nelson issued the following statement:
“Flight Attendants cheer the passage of the FAA Reauthorization Act of 2018 with a provision to combat Flight Attendant fatigue by increasing minimum rest from 8 hours to 10 hours. This bill closes a safety loophole while improving Flight Attendant health and achieving equal minimum rest with our flight deck counterparts.”
“We applaud Chairman Shuster (R-PA), Ranking Member DeFazio (D-OR), Chairman LoBiondo (R-NJ), Ranking Member Larsen (D-WA), Chairman John Thune (R-SD), Ranking Member Bill Nelson (D-FL), Chairman Roy Blunt (R-MO), and Ranking Member Maria Cantwell (D-WA), for their leadership in writing this legislation so important for a safe and dependable U.S. aviation system.”
The final bill received overwhelming bipartisan support. AFA especially notes Congressional champions for Flight Attendant 10 hours minimum rest:
House – Rep. Peter DeFazio (D-OR), Rep. Frank LoBiondo (R-NJ), Rep. Rick Larsen (D-WA), Rep. Mike Capuano (D-MA), Rep. John Katko (R-NY), Rep. Cheri Bustos (D-IL), Rep. Dan Lipinski (D-IL), Rep. Michael Bost (R-IL), Rep. Dina Titus (D-NV), Rep. Paul Mitchell (R-MI), Rep. Brenda Lawrence (D-MI), Rep. Grace Napolitano (D-CA), Rep. David McKinley (R-WV), and Rep. Rodney Davis (R-IL).
Senate – Senator Mazie Hirono (D-HI) originally introduced the language when she was in the House and continued advocacy in the Senate. Senator Maria Cantwell (D-WA), Senator Bill Nelson (D-FL), Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Senator Ed Markey (D-MA), and Senator Brian Schatz (D-HI) have all since worked hard to ensure the rest language would be included in a final FAA bill. We thank Senator Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV) for weighing in when it especially counted to help us get our rest.
“Over 100,000 Flight Attendants from around the country made calls, signed postcards, rallied, repeatedly visited congressional offices and took other actions to achieve this outcome today. This bill lifts standards for Flight Attendants across the industry and addresses serious safety, health and security issues in our workplace – the passenger cabin,” Nelson concluded.
Summary of AFA safety priorities included in the FAA Reauthorization Act of 2018:
On Wednesday night, Alaska performed a system update to Crew Access. When they did this, some “posted” trips were removed from the “grabs” or “trades” section. If you had a trip posted, we suggest you view Crew Access to make sure your trip is still showing as available for grab and/or trade.
Also, most of you saw the message on the FA Webpage, however if you didn’t, the system is defaulting to “open time” trips when you go to look at available trips to pick up. If you want to view “grabs and/or trades” (trips posted by other flight attendants), you will need to click on the correct button. They are working on a fix for this issue.
In Solidarity,
Terry, Jake, Adam, Melinda and Megan
Alaska Airlines management has directed that older-style B/E Aerospace coffee makers must not be used without a Brew Shield. The action follows months of advocacy by AFA ASHSC, Inflight Service Committee, and MEC, highlighting ongoing injuries to Flight Attendants from the coffee makers. Our Committees and MEC continue to call for a complete suspension of the older coffee makers until the issue is fully resolved to ensure the safety of both crewmembers and passengers.
The April 2024 Regular MEC Meeting was held this week on Wednesday, April 10. Our MEC met with management to receive updates and review concerns, including DOT drug testing procedures, lack of meetings with the AFA Benefits Committee, coffee maker safety, and staffing adjustment leave administration. Our Negotiating Committee will return to the bargaining table next week in a scheduled mediation session, focusing on data from the Flight Attendant Financial Security Survey.
Scheduling Committee On Tuesday, March 26, our AFA Scheduling Committee Chairpersons met to discuss their ongoing work to represent our Flight Attendants and push for improvements in our workplace. Representing you at the meeting were Heather Reier (ANC), Jaqui Bellenie (SFO), Rita Tillou (SEA), Melodie Anderes (PDX), Kanako Yamada (LAX), and Kitty Cohen (SAN). Also […]
Our AFA Alaska Master Executive Council (MEC) met this week on Monday, March 18, and Tuesday, March 19, to conduct their ongoing work to represent our Flight Attendants. The MEC also met with executive management and a group of union leaders from other company workgroups to receive updates and discuss concerns affecting employees company-wide. The next Regular MEC Meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, April 9, and Wednesday, April 10.
Reserve Committee On Thursday, March 14, representatives from our AFA Local Reserve Committees met to discuss their ongoing work to advocate for Reserve Flight Attendants. Representing you at the meeting were Brandi Urban (ANC), Teran Eason (SEA), Anthony Eskander (PDX), Meghan Casey (SFO), Kanako Yamada (LAX), and Rebecca Garcia (SAN). Also present was MEC Reserve […]