[See also Negotiations: General 2 [misc] and Negotiations: General [misc]]
Q: On the blog, a question was asked regarding whether these negotiations meant that the contract had to be opened. The answer provided was, “Management wanted to negotiate only transition items that would bring the L-VX FAs over to the L-AS CBA.” Can you please expand on what exactly were those “transition items,” and why is it that the JNC took the position that improvements for L-AS absolutely had to be included as well instead of just bringing L-VX into our contract as-is? Because by doing so, is that not what opened us up for concessions like the 2-year extension?
A: Transition items would be any provisions necessary to bring L-VX FAs into the current L-AS 2014-2019 contract: creation of a sick leave bank, attendance policy transition, training, benefits and implementation dates for hours of service, scheduling, reserve, compensation, etc. The JNC and the MEC were concerned that a “transition only” TA would not get ratified by the full membership (L-VX and L-AS) if there were not improvements for the L-AS FAs over and above the existing agreement. A mid-term agreement with a duration that extends beyond the existing amendable date is not a concession in and of itself.
