Grievance Committee

[AS] Early Push Program Grievance Filed and Sustained

June 29, 2017 09:00

This message is for pre-merger Alaska Flight Attendants

In the “Early Push Program” membership release dated May 11, 2017, the Master Executive Council (MEC) communicated our concerns about that program. Unfortunately, the situation did not significantly improve in the weeks following that communication, so AFA filed Grievance No. 36-99-2-37-17 “Violation of §8.D.1 Early Push Program” on June 1, 2017. In fact, you provided the MEC with numerous examples of posted boarding times that had been adjusted to more than 45 minutes prior to departure, which, in our opinion, is a clear violation of §8.D.1 of the contract.

AFA requested Alaska Airlines management to investigate the circumstances surrounding when the Company altered Flight Attendants’ scheduled departures 10 minutes earlier than scheduled, thereby pressuring Flight Attendants to arrive at the aircraft 55 minutes prior to departure rather than 45 minutes. AFA received great news on Tuesday: Management sustained the grievance, which means management agreed the contract was violated.

In the grievance response addressed to MEC Grievance Committee Chairperson Stephanie Adams, management writes:

Stephanie, we have asked airport services to move from a 10-minute early boarding to 5 minutes in the case of early pushes only. By pushing this from D-50 to D-45, we will be contractually compliant. Therefore, we requested and were guaranteed that departures be posted no greater than 5 minutes early instead of 10 effective immediately.

Management affirms that you are under no contractual obligation to arrive at the aircraft earlier than 45 minutes prior to scheduled departure. AFA continues to take the position that it is acceptable to begin boarding right at 45 minutes prior to departure for “early push” flights—but only if all required safety checks and the Flight Attendant briefing have been completed and the entire Flight Attendant crew voluntarily agrees without feeling pressured. Allowing boarding to commence right at 45 minutes prior to scheduled departure adds a few extra minutes to help out the operation (as compared to regular boarding).

Now that the grievance has been sustained, contact one of your local AFA representatives or file a report at http://support.afaalaska.org as soon as possible if you believe your van time has been adjusted in anticipation of an early push, your report time is changed or if you experience pressure to board earlier than 45 minutes prior to departure.

In Solidarity,

Your MEC – Jeffrey Peterson, Brian Palmer, Linda Christou, Lisa Pinkston, Laura Masserant, Cathy Gwynn, Melissa Osborne, Tim Green, Brice McGee; MEC Grievance Committee Chairperson Stephanie Adams, MEC Grievance Committee Member Christina Frees; and MEC Scheduling Committee Chairperson Zac Weeks

[AS] AFA Alaska System Board of Adjustment Interviews

June 26, 2017 08:00

This message is for pre-merger Alaska Flight Attendants

The Master Executive Council (MEC) will be conducting interviews for one (1) member to serve on the AFA System Board of Adjustment.

Scope

Members are to serve on the System Board of Adjustment for the purpose of arbitrating any disputes or grievances that may arise under the terms of the Agreement between Alaska Airlines and its Flight Attendants.

Policy/Responsibilities

There shall be two members selected by the MEC from active members in good standing to represent the Association. Members will be selected at-large without regard to Local Council or domicile.
Any person seeking a position as a System Board of Adjustment Member must submit a resume. Candidates must interview with the MEC.
System Board Members shall be selected for a two (2) year appointment period in accordance with the AFA Constitution and Bylaws. At least one appointment will be reviewed in June of each year. Selection shall be made, insofar as possible, to ensure that both members will not be new at the same time.
The System Board Members will act in the best interest of the membership and the Association and will be consistent with the Agreement between the Flight Attendants and Alaska Airlines.
The MEC President shall have the ability, in the event of an emergency, to appoint a qualified member in good standing to fill an ad hoc position on the Board, should the alternate not be available.
The MEC on an ad hoc basis, by majority vote, may appoint an expert as a substitute for one member of the System Board of Adjustment.

Qualifications

Current Alaska Airlines Flight Attendant
Willingness to attend the requisite grievance training(s)
In depth knowledge of the contract
Understanding of the principles of just cause
Adherence to Grievance Committee policies, procedures, and standards of ethical conduct
Ability to maintain confidentiality of sensitive and personal information
Maintenance of member-in-good-standing status
Ability to remain in good standing with the company
Ability to analyze written data and information with high attention to detail
Strong written and communication skills
Strong computer skills.

Expressing Interest and Interviewing Schedule

Interviews will be conducted during the July MEC meeting on Tuesday, July 25 at the AFA Alaska MEC office in Seattle.

To express interest for the position, please submit a declaration of interest and resume to MEC Secretary-Treasurer Linda Christou at linda.christou@afaalaska.org no later than 5 PM Pacific Time on Friday, July 14, 2017. Linda will be able to provide additional information regarding transportation and booking of flights if necessary.

In Solidarity,

Your MEC – Jeffrey Peterson, Brian Palmer, Linda Christou, Lisa Pinkston, Laura Masserant, Cathy Gwynn, Melissa Osborne, Tim Green, Brice McGee; LEC Presidents-Elect Terry Taylor and Mario de’Medici; and MEC Grievance Committee Chairperson Stephanie Adams

AFA Online Issue Reporting Is Here!

June 13, 2017 15:00

Your AFA Alaska Master Executive Council (MEC) is excited to introduce the new AFA Alaska online support center. This new system is designed for you to document and report scheduling and reserve concerns, situations where you might be facing discipline, potential contractual grievances, and any other issue where you might need AFA support. The system will also allow AFA representatives to better track issues that are occurring, identify trends, and address and resolve issues with management.

You can access the system using the following link:

http://support.afaalaska.org

Reporting New Issues

You can report a new issue in the system by opening a ticket, just follow these steps:

Visit http://support.afaalaska.org/
Click the blue “Open a New Ticket” button
Fill in your personal information (including a non-company email address)
Select the help topic that relates to the issue
Fill in the issue-specific information and provide details

From this screen, you’ll also be able to attach pictures, PDF files, screenshots, and other information that will help your AFA representatives to have more information available about the issue.

Once you’ve opened a ticket, you’ll receive a confirmation email and with a ticket number. Behind the scenes, your ticket will be assigned to an AFA representative who will assist you with the issue.

Checking on Open Issues

With your ticket number, you’ll be able to track the status of the ticket online, add additional information and attachments for your AFA representative to have available. To check on your ticket:

Visit http://support.afaalaska.org
Click the green “Check Ticket Status” button
Enter your email address and ticket number
Click the “View Ticket” button

Questions?

If you have any questions about the AFA online support center or need assistance with an issue, you can always contact your LEC Officers.

In Solidarity,

Your MEC – Jeffrey Peterson, Brian Palmer, Linda Christou, Lisa Pinkston, Laura Masserant, Cathy Gwynn, Melissa Osborne, Tim Green and Brice McGee

[AS] Coming Soon: Online Issue Reporting for AFA

June 6, 2017 05:00

This message is for pre-merger Alaska Flight Attendants

Over the past year, your AFA Master Executive Council (MEC) has been working to develop an online system to allow Flight Attendants to report contractual issues and other concerns. We’re pleased to announce that this new online system will be launching next week.

The new AFA Alaska online support center will allow you to document scheduling and reserve concerns, situations where you might be facing discipline, potential contractual grievances, and any other issue where you might need AFA support. After you’ve filed a ticket on an issue, the issue will automatically be routed to the appropriate AFA committee member or officer for follow up. You’ll also be able to track the progress online and add additional information for your AFA representative to have available.

Be on the lookout for more information about the new system including access information next week.

In Solidarity,

Your MEC – Jeffrey Peterson, Brian Palmer, Linda Christou, Lisa Pinkston, Laura Masserant, Cathy Gwynn, Melissa Osborne, Tim Green and Brice McGee

[AS] Trip Trading Contractual Grievances – May 2017

May 30, 2017 17:00

For release to pre-merger AS council only

AFA is as disappointed as you in our new Jeppesen Crew Access (JCA) system. Between San Diego’s Open Time not opening on time and system slowdowns throughout the day, once again the experience on Open Time day this month was subpar. AFA advocated that management provide a “do over” Open Time day to make up for all the trouble, but management declined due to concerns over operational liability.

AFA is continuing to pressure management on a daily basis to ensure the Company provides us with an operable real-time trip trading system. Although we are seeing improvements to JCA over time, those improvements are too little, too late. The following is a list of JCA-related contractual grievances filed to date with their respective status.

New Grievances

Grievance No.: 36-99-2-27-17-Violation of §12.C.2-3 Open Time Trip Drop. This grievance alleges the Company’s violation of Collective Bargaining Agreement §12.C.2-3 [Exchange of Sequences: Trading Procedures], past practice and all related sections of the Collective Bargaining Agreement when it denied Flight Attendants the ability to drop a sequence in Open Time at contractually designated times, e.g. SEA at 2:00pm PT.

Details: The Company agreed it violated this provision of our CBA. The Company is working with the IT Department and Jeppesen to resolve the issue. This is tentatively scheduled for implementation on May 31^st.

Grievance No.: 36-99-2-28-17-Violation of §12.C.1 Real-Time Trading Procedures. This grievance alleges the Company’s violation of Collective Bargaining Agreement §12.C.1 [Exchange of Sequences: Trading Procedures], past practice and all related sections of the Collective Bargaining Agreement when it did not provide Flight Attendants a real-time electronic system for processing sequence trades, picks-ups, drops and give-aways because it requires frequent refreshing of one’s internet browser in order to view updated trading data and availability.

Details: The Company agreed it violated this provision of our CBA. The Company’s remedy is that until JCA is modified, there is a manual workaround requiring Flight Attendants to refresh their browser to view an updated screen. AFA very much disagrees with the Company’s remedy and will be disputing it.

Grievance No.: 36-99-2-29-17-Violation §12.C & §30.B.5 Trading and Requalification Training. This grievance alleges the Company’s violation of Collective Bargaining Agreement §12.C [Exchange of Sequences: Trading Procedures] & §30.B.5 [Training: Recurrent Training], past practice and all related sections of the Collective Bargaining Agreement when its crew tracking system (Jeppesen Crew Access) did not allow a Flight Attendant to electronically trade trips that were on his/her line in a bid month in which s/he is scheduled for requalification training.

Details: AFA is awaiting the Company’s response.

Grievance No.: 36-99-2-30-17-Violation §12.C.3 SAN Open Time. This grievance alleges the Company’s violation of Collective Bargaining Agreement §12.C.3 [Exchange of Sequences: Trading Procedures], past practice and all related sections of the Collective Bargaining Agreement when it did not begin access to Open Time trading in the San Diego Flight Attendant domicile (SAN) at 9:00am PT on May 15, 2017.

Details: AFA is awaiting the Company’s response. (The Company eventually opened SAN OT at 10:00am PT.)

Unresolved Grievances

Grievance No.: 36-99-2-2-17- Violation of §11.H.7. Denial of Reserve Automated Posting and Trading of Assignments. This grievance alleges the Company’s violation of Collective Bargaining Agreement Section 11.H.7. [Reserve/Reserve Exchange of Days, Pick-Ups and Trades], past practice and all related sections of the Collective Bargaining Agreement when its new Jeppesen Crew Access trading system denied Reserve Flight Attendants automated posting and trading of reserve assignments.

Details: The Company denied violating this section of the CBA. This grievance is on the list to arbitrate unless fixed prior. (This is tentatively scheduled for implementation on May 31^st—finally!)

Grievance No.: 36-99-2-4-17- Violation of §9.E. & §12.E. All Open Time Trips Withheld from Open Time and Premium Pay Removed. This grievance alleges the

the Company’s violation of Collective Bargaining Agreement Section 9.E. [Junior Available//and Premium Open Time/Premium Open Time] & 12.E. [Exchange of Sequences/Open Time], past practice and all related sections of the Collective Bargaining Agreement when on or about February 9, 2017, and on or about February 16, 2017, all Open Time trips across the entire system were withheld from Open Time and premium pay was removed. This is an ongoing violation, and this grievance intends to include all future violations.

Details: The Company agreed it violated this provision of our CBA. This grievance also includes any later violations. We are mediating this issue for a remedy on July 5, 2017.

Grievance No.: 36-99-2-6-17- Violation of §11.E. Low Time First Available (LTFA) Out of Order Assignments January 31 to February 2, 2017. This grievance alleges the Company’s violation of Collective Bargaining Agreement Section 11.E. [Reserve/Order of Assignment], past practice and all related sections of the Collective Bargaining Agreement when on or about January 31, 2017, at 8:00pm PST to February 2, 2017, at 11:00am PST, Crew Scheduling assigned Reserve Flight Attendants out of order because of the inability for Crew Scheduling to accurately verify order of assignments due to the cutover to the new crew tracking and scheduling system, Jeppesen Crew Access (JCA).

Details: The Company agreed it violated this provision of our CBA. We are mediating this issue for a remedy on July 5, 2017.

Grievance No.: 36-99-2-7-17- Violation of §11.E. Low Time First Available (LTFA) Out of Order Assignments Post Jeppesen Crew Access (JCA) Cutover. This grievance alleges the Company’s violation of Collective Bargaining Agreement Section 11.E. [Reserve/Order of Assignment], past practice and all related sections of the Collective Bargaining Agreement when starting on or about February 2, 2017 at 11:00am PST, and including all subsequent violations, Crew Scheduling assigned Reserve Flight Attendants out of order because of the inability for Crew Scheduling to accurately verify order of assignments due to the cutover to the new crew tracking and scheduling system, Jeppesen Crew Access (JCA).

Details: The Company agreed it violated this provision of our CBA. We are mediating this issue for a remedy on July 5, 2017.

Grievance No.: 36-99-2-10-17- Violation of §11.F.15, §11.H.7 & §11.H.8 Failure to Provide Automated Ability for Reserve Flight Attendants to Self-Assign and Trade APSB. This grievance alleges the Company’s violation of Collective Bargaining Agreement §11.F.15 [Reserve: Airport Standby], §11.H.7 & §11.H.8 [Reserve: Reserve Exchange of Days, Pick-Ups and Trades], past practice and all related sections of the Collective Bargaining Agreement when it failed to provide automated ability for Reserve Flight Attendants to self-assign and trade airport standby (APSB) assignments due to the cutover to the new crew tracking and scheduling system, Jeppesen Crew Access (JCA).

Details: The Company agreed it violated this provision of our CBA, and a fix was implemented to correct Reserve self-assignment and direct trading of APSB. The ability to advertise and trade APSB is tentatively scheduled for implementation on May 31^st.

Grievance No.: 36-99-2-18-17-Violation of §12.G.3 & §10.Y.7 SIP’d Sequences in Open Time. This grievance alleges the Company’s violation of Collective Bargaining Agreement §12.G.3 [Exchanges of Sequences: Sequence Interruption Point (SIP) Sequences] & §10.Y.7 [Scheduling: Sequence Construction], past practice and all related sections of the Collective Bargaining Agreement when it failed to identify SIP sequences placed into Open Time by the Company for pick-up/trade by Flight Attendants or assigned to (or self-assigned by) Reserve Flight Attendants; and thereby failed to pay all eligible Minimum Pay Rules on such sequences pursuant to §21.D [Compensation: Minimum Pay Rules].

Details: The Company denied violating this section of the CBA. The Company is looking into a manual workaround until it is fixed. This grievance is on the list to arbitrate/mediate unless fixed prior.

Resolved Grievances

Grievance No.: 36-99-2-12-17- Violation of §12.C.2-3 Allowing Out of

Domicile Trades, Pick-Ups, Drops and Give-Aways on Incorrect Dates. This grievance alleges the Company’s violation of Collective Bargaining Agreement §12.C.2-3 [Exchange of Sequences: Trading Procedures], past practice and all related sections of the Collective Bargaining Agreement when it allowed out of domicile trades, pick-ups, drops and give-aways on the fifteenth (15^th) and sixteenth (16^th) of the month rather than the required seventeenth (17^th) of the month.