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        You are here: Home / Archives for Latest News

        Reduction in Force Part 3

        July 23, 2020 17:00

        This is the third in a series of “Reduction in Force” communications from the Master Executive Council (MEC). See “Reduction in Force Part 1” and “Reduction in Force Part 2” for the previous editions.

        In This Edition

        • Avoiding Involuntary Furloughs: Extend the CARES Act Payroll Support Program
        • Staffing Projections From the All-Employee Webcast Explained

        Avoiding Involuntary Furloughs: Extend the CARES Act Payroll Support Program

        The single most impactful thing that you can do to completely avoid involuntary furloughs (IVFs) in October would be for you, your family members and your friends to contact Congress and demand our legislators extend the CARES Act Payroll Support Program.

        We need urgent action on this now and every day in July:

        1. Call your Representative and Senators. Flight Attendants, family and friends should make three calls every day: two to the Senate line and one to the House line.
        2. Sign this letter to your Representative and Senators >
        3. Tell five flying partners and your friends and family to do the same!

        House: 888-907-9365 | Senate: 888-848-4824

        Sample Script:
        Hello, I am a constituent calling to ask [Representative] /[Senator] to help save my job as an essential worker. Take legislative action in July to extend the CARES Act Payroll Support Program for aviation workers in order to avoid massive job loss in October. Keep us connected to our jobs, our paychecks, and our healthcare. Thank you for your urgent attention to this.


        Staffing Projections From the All-Employee Webcast Explained

        WARN Act Notices

        The Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) Act helps ensure advance notice in cases of qualified mass layoffs. Management is required by law to provide “WARN notices” to employees who may be laid off (i.e. involuntarily furloughed). In all the states in which there are Flight Attendant domiciles (AK, WA, OR and CA), those notices must be sent no less than 60 days prior to the date of the involuntary furlough, or no later than August 1st for involuntary furloughs effective on October 1st.

        WARN notices provided to the union on behalf of affected employees covered by a collective bargaining agreement satisfies the WARN Act requirements except for in California, which also requires notices to be sent directly to the employee. As of today, AFA has not been provided with WARN notices, but we will advise membership as soon as the notice has been served.

        Management’s Projections and “Excess Employees” Explained

        On today’s all-employee webcast, management shared there would be 2500 “excess employees” in Inflight in October and that there are 1200 “volunteers to date” in Inflight. The Master Executive Council (MEC) understands that 2500 is the number of Flight Attendants who will receive WARN notices. That number of 2500 is inclusive of a buffer above the actual number of potential involuntary furloughs (IVFs) in order to assure the Company is in compliance with the WARN Act; it is not the actual number.

        AFA’s Interpretation of Management’s Projections

        The MEC is currently estimating approximately 1900 to 2200 Flight Attendants are in the potential involuntary furlough range without any furlough mitigations. At the time of the webcast, 1200 Flight Attendants had bid for some form of furlough mitigation (e.g. Early Out, Extended Leave of Absence or Enhanced Voluntary Furlough); that number has climbed to approximately 1300 since then. It would seem logical to estimate that we are somewhere between 600 and 900 Flight Attendants short of avoiding IVFs as of this writing, but that is not entirely accurate.

        Keep in mind that many relatively junior Flight Attendants have applied for various furlough mitigations. They would be converted to IVF if they are in the seniority range impacted by involuntary furlough. Therefore, one cannot assume that every application for furlough mitigation will actually reduce the number of involuntary furloughs in a one to one (1:1) ratio.


        Coming Soon

        • Order of Recall for IVF, EVF and ELOA
        • Dues Obligation During a Reduction in Force

        These are extremely difficult and stressful times. Please remember that your Employee Assistance Program (EAP) Committee is always available as a support resource. As your direct representative on the MEC, your LEC president is available to answer questions or concerns that you may have about all the information presented here. Contact information for your respective LEC president can be found by clicking here.

        Filed Under: Latest News Tagged With: 2020, CARES Act, early out, ELOA, enhanced voluntary furlough, EO, EVF, extended leave of absence, furlough, involuntary furlough

        Reduction in Force Part 2

        July 20, 2020 17:00

        This is the second in a series of “Reduction in Force” communications from the Master Executive Council (MEC). See “Reduction in Force Part 1” for the previous edition.

        In This Edition

        • Avoiding Involuntary Furloughs: Extend the CARES Act Payroll Support Program
        • Status of Primary Travelers and Registered Domestic Partners
        • Order of Awards for EOs, ELOAs and EVFs
        • Seniority Accrual, Pay Rates and Retention of Longevity

        Avoiding Involuntary Furloughs: Extend the CARES Act Payroll Support Program

        The single most impactful thing that you can do to completely avoid involuntary furloughs (IVFs) in October would be for you, your family members and your friends to contact Congress and demand our legislators extend the CARES Act Payroll Support Program.

        We need urgent action on this now and every day in July:

        1. Call your Representative and Senators. Flight Attendants, family and friends should make three calls every day: two to the Senate line and one to the House line.

        House: 888-907-9365
        Senate: 888-848-4824

        Sample Script:
        Hello, I am a constituent calling to ask [Representative] /[Senator] to help save my job as an essential worker. Take legislative action in July to extend the CARES Act Payroll Support Program for aviation workers in order to avoid massive job loss in October. Keep us connected to our jobs, our paychecks, and our healthcare. Thank you for your urgent attention to this.

        • Sign this letter to your Representative and Senators >
        • Tell five flying partners and your friends and family to do the same!

        Status of Primary Travelers and Registered Domestic Partners

        On ELOA, EVF and IVF

        AFA has confirmed with Employee Travel that Primary Travelers and Registered Domestic Partners retain online pass benefits (Alaska Airlines [AS], Horizon Air [QX] and SkyWest operated as Alaska Airlines [OO]) while on an Extended Leave of Absence, Enhanced Voluntary Furlough or during the contractual eligibility period (of varying durations pursuant to §18.M [Online Pass Privileges During Involuntary Furlough]) if involuntarily furloughed.

        On Retiree Travel

        For Flight Attendants considering the Early Out packages, Registered Domestic Partners but not Primary Travelers retain online pass benefits under the Early Out packages (and Retiree Travel if eligible).


        Order of Awards for EOs, ELOAs and EVFs

        Early Outs (EOs), Extended Leaves of Absence (ELOAs) and Enhanced Voluntary Furloughs (EVFs) will be awarded in the following order:

        • EOs (EOP-1 and EOP-2) in Occupational Seniority (system seniority) order
        • ELOAs (ELOA-12) and EVFs (EVF-6, EVF-9, EVF-12, EVF-15) in Occupational Seniority (system seniority) order

        Seniority Accrual, Pay Rates and Retention of Longevity

        Seniority accrual

        Pursuant to the Reduction in Force 2020 Sideletter of Agreement (7/8/2020), Occupational Seniority (e.g. for schedule and vacation bidding, Longevity Paid Time Off eligibility) and Company Seniority (e.g. for vacation accrual and non-revenue travel boarding priority) will continue to accrue while on an Extended Leave of Absence, a Voluntary Furlough or if involuntarily furloughed.

        Pay rates

        Flight Attendants will continue to move through the step rates of pay if eligible while on ELOA, EVF or IVF.

        Longevity

        Longevity, which is “vesting service” for 401(k) vesting and retirement eligibility, is frozen (retained but not accrued) while on ELOA, EVF or IVF.


        Coming Soon

        • Dues Obligation
        • Order of Recall for IVF, EVF and ELOA

        These are extremely difficult and stressful times. Please remember that your Employee Assistance Program (EAP) Committee is always available as a support resource. As your direct representative on the MEC, your LEC president is available to answer questions or concerns that you may have about all the information presented here. Contact information for your respective LEC president can be found by clicking here.

        We hope to see you at the remaining “Early Out & Leave Options” informational session tomorrow (7/21)!

        Filed Under: Latest News Tagged With: 2020, CARES Act, early out, ELOA, enhanced voluntary furlough, EO, EVF, extended leave of absence, furlough, involuntary furlough, IVF, longevity, reduction in force, seniority

        Reduction in Force Part 1

        July 17, 2020 17:00

        This is the first in a series of reduction in force communications.

        In This Edition

        • How to Mitigate or Avoid Involuntary Furlough
          • Extend the CARES Act Payroll Support Program
          • Contact Congress Every Day in July
          • Updated Projections
          • Bidding to Avoid Involuntary Furlough

        How to Mitigate or Avoid Involuntary Furlough

        Master Executive Council

        One of the most frequently asked questions by Flight Attendants right now is what we can do to mitigate or avoid involuntary furloughs (IVFs).

        Extend the CARES Act Payroll Support Program

        There is an active effort by AFA-CWA and other unions to champion an extension of the CARES Act, which would bring additional payroll support to aviation workers and a continued moratorium on involuntary furloughs through March 31, 2021. This is an active conversation within Congress right now with very tangible momentum, but the window in which to achieve an extension during this legislative session is relatively short.

        Contact Congress every day in July

        The single most impactful thing that you can do to completely avoid involuntary furloughs in October would be for you, your family members and your friends to contact Congress and demand our legislators extend the CARES Act Payroll Support Program.

        We need urgent action on this now and every day in July:

        1. Call your Representative and Senators. Flight Attendants, family and friends should make three calls every day: two to the Senate line and one to the House line.
        2. Sign this letter to your Representative and Senators >
        3. Tell five flying partners and your friends and family to do the same!

        House: 888-907-9365 | Senate: 888-848-4824

        Sample Script:
        Hello, I am a constituent calling to ask [Representative] /[Senator] to help save my job as an essential worker. Take legislative action in July to extend the CARES Act Payroll Support Program for aviation workers in order to avoid massive job loss in October. Keep us connected to our jobs, our paychecks, and our healthcare. Thank you for your urgent attention to this.

        Updated Projections

        During the first FA Early Out & Leave Options informational session on Tuesday, management estimated they are looking for between 1300 Flight Attendant (~22% of 5975) and up to 2200 Flight Attendants (~36% of 5975) to elect some form of furlough mitigation effective in October. Therefore, IVFs will be avoided altogether if somewhere between 1300 and 2200 Flight Attendants take Early Outs, Extended Leaves of Absence or Enhanced Voluntary Furloughs–or if Congress passes an extension to the CARES Act.

        Read more about the Early Out and other furlough mitigation options >

        Bidding to Avoid Involuntary Furlough

        Some Flight Attendants seem to believe that bidding for an Extended Leave of Absence or Enhanced Voluntary Furlough or being on any type of leave of absence will make them ineligible for involuntary furlough. This is not true. If an insufficient number of Flight Attendants bid for EOs, ELOAs and EVFs, then the Flight Attendants with the least Occupational Seniority (i.e. most junior) will be furloughed in order to achieve the required reduction in force. There is no IVF “super seniority” gained by bidding for or being on any type of LOA because such leaves are ‘converted’ to IVF if applicable.

        Example: The Company needs a reduction in force of 2200 FAs. 2190 FAs bid for EO, ELOA or EVF, so the Company needs to reduce staffing by at least 10 more FAs. The 10 most junior FAs on system seniority list will be involuntarily furloughed. If any of those 10 junior FAs also bid for an ELOA or EVF, then their awards are denied; the next most junior FA(s) will also be involuntarily furloughed until there is a reduction in force of 2200 FAs via ELOA, EVF and IVF.


        Coming Soon

        • Order of Awards for EOs, ELOA, EVFs
        • Seniority Accrual and Retention of Longevity
        • Dues Obligation
        • Order of Recall for IVF, EVF and ELOA

        These are extremely difficult and stressful times. Please remember that your Employee Assistance Program (EAP) Committee is always available as a support resource. As your direct representative on the MEC, your LEC president is available to answer questions or concerns that you may have about all the information presented here. Contact information for your respective LEC president can be found by clicking here.

        We hope to see you at the remaining “Early Out & Leave Options” informational session on 7/21!

        Filed Under: Latest News Tagged With: 2020, CARES Act, ELOA, enhanced voluntary furlough, EVF, extended leave of absence, involuntary furlough, IVF

        AFA Update – July 13, 2020

        July 13, 2020 05:00

        In This Edition

        • ACTION ALERT: Call Congress to Extend the CARES Act Payroll Support Program
        • Vanguard Retirement Webinars
        • Telephonic Support Groups for Flight Attendants
        • Ground Commuting During Significant Weather Events 
        • Temporary Requalification (RQ) Training Timeline Modification

        ACTION ALERT: Call Congress to Extend the CARES Act Payroll Support Program

        Government Affairs Committee

        We need to generate phone calls to Congress every day. Flight Attendants and family members should be making two calls to the Senate line and one call to the House line.

        We are calling for a six month aviation Payroll Support Program extension through March 31, 2021, to protect our jobs. This is the most successful jobs program of the CARES Act and it needs to be extended since COVID-19 cases are again on the rise.

        All of aviation labor is standing together to call on Congress to pass a clean extension of the Payroll Support Program before the summer Congressional recess. Waiting until September for this action is too late because October planning will be done and hundreds of thousands of workers will already be told they are out of work. Already, Delta Air Lines pilots and United Airlines workers have received WARN notices. 

        We need urgent action on this now:

        1.         Call your Representative and Senators: Flight Attendants and family should make three calls every day. Two to the Senate line and one to the House line.

        House: (888) 907-9365
        Senate: (888) 848-4824

        Sample Script:

        Hello, I am a constituent calling to ask [Representative]/[Senator] to help save my job as an essential worker. Take legislative action in July to extend the CARES Act Payroll Support Program for aviation workers in order to avoid massive job loss in October. Keep us connected to our jobs, our paychecks, and our healthcare. Thank you for your urgent attention to this.

        2.         Sign this letter to your Representative and Senators >

        3.         Tell 5 flying partners and your friends and family to do the same!

        A CARES Act extension must pass Congress before they recess later this summer. Take action now and plan to keep taking action every day throughout July.

        https://youtu.be/OAjNYnWVxOQ
        WATCH: AFA Government Affairs Activists Urge Flight Attendants to Make Calls

        Vanguard Retirement Webinars

        Retirement Committee

        As the company will be offering early out packages, your AFA Retirement Committee, in conjunction with Vanguard, the company’s 401(k) plan administrator, will be conducting an online webinar to provide information and answer questions about the planning process for retirement.  More information from Vanguard is below.

        Switching from earning a paycheck to living off your retirement savings and Social Security is a big change. If you’re within a few years of retiring, learn how you can turn your savings into a steady paycheck. This webinar will help you answer:

        • How much will my retirement cost?
        • Where will I find the money to pay for retirement?
        • How do I make my savings last as long as my retirement?
        • How do I invest my money during retirement?

        Dates, Times, and Registration Information

        Two sessions will be available:

        • Friday, July 17 – 10 AM PDT
        • Wednesday, July 29 – 1 PM PDT

        Advanced registration is required and can be completed using the link below:

        Click here to register for one of the sessions

        Questions?

        If you have any questions about the upcoming webinars, please contact MEC Retirement Committee Chairperson Terry Taylor at terry.taylor@afaalaska.org.


        Telephonic Support Groups for Flight Attendants

        Employee Assistance Program (EAP)/Professional Standards Committee

        Build your resiliency by joining these telephonic support groups just for Flight Attendants.  Groups are sponsored by your AFA EAP/FADAP and facilitated by a confidential mental health professional.  All Flight Attendants are welcome.

        Learn some techniques on stress management, decision making under pressure, emotional balance and connect with flying partners during this period of uncertainty in the Aviation Industry. Join any or all sessions.  No pre-registration required.

        Calls start on Monday, July 13 and are scheduled Mondays (July 13, 20, 27, August 3) and Fridays (July 17, 23, 31, August 7).  Each call begins at 12 PM PDT and will last one hour.

        Call-In Number

        (855) 544-2320 or (401) 648-9218

        If outside the U.S., follow the directions here.


        Ground Commuting During Significant Weather Events 

        Grievance Committee

        The MEC recently mediated Grievance 36-99-2-30-19, Violation of Section 28.G.2 Ground Commuting Policy.  This grievance arose out of the February 2019 snow events.  The grievance alleged the Company’s violation of Collective Bargaining Agreement   Section 28.G.2 [Domiciles:  Commuter Policy/Ground Commuting Policy], past practice and all related sections of the Collective Bargaining Agreement when during the February 2019 Pacific Northwest snowstorms, it did not allow Flight Attendants to use the ground commuter policy because the Company did not consider a snowstorm-related ground commuting failure to be unanticipated. 

        Originally, we sought to arbitrate this grievance, however it seemed better with this particular case to mediate the issue with an unbiased mediator.  Arbitration results in a decision made by the arbitrator usually with one side winning and the other side losing; whereas mediation allows both parties to have a say in the outcome.   An arbitration award cannot change or add contract language, it may only interpret what was already present, however in mediation the parties may come to agreements about adding or changing language.  

        The issue was resolved very favorably with the addition of language for ground commuting during significant weather delays.  This adds protections for Flight Attendants attempting to get to work whether the weather event is anticipated or not.  The new language adds a detailed process for management to follow, thereby removing any subjectivity, which typically was only a detriment to our Flight Attendants. 

        A complete copy of the sideletter of agreement that includes the newly agreed upon language related to ground commuting during significant weather events has been uploaded to the AFA Alaska website and can be accessed by clicking here.

        Questions?

        If you have any questions about the grievance or sideletter of agreement, please contact your Local Grievance Committee.


        Temporary Requalification Training (RQ) Timeline Modification

        Grievance Committee

        For Flight Attendants returning from a leave of absence or who have been unable to complete Recurrent Training (RT) by the end of their eligibility period, completing Requalification Training (RQ) is a requirement before being able to return to work.  Section 30.B.3 of the joint collective bargaining agreement (JCBA) requires management to offer a full RQ class within the first five working days of every month, but this requirement has recently caused significant stress for many of our Flight Attendants.  Due to a recent changes in how management interprets the eligibility period of Flight Attendants who are required to take Requalification Training (RQ), the home study CBT that must be completed prior to attending class is no longer made available until the first day of the month when scheduled to attend class.  With this change, Flight Attendants who might be scheduled to take RQ on the 2nd of the month would not even have access to the CBT until the 1st of the month.

        Due to this very compressed timeline that Flight Attendants are now being given to complete the CBT prior to RQ, the MEC approached management to work to extend the period of time that would be available to complete the CBT prior to class.   We were able to reach a temporary agreement with management to extend the contractual requirement for the Company to offer a full RQ class from within the first five working days of the month to having the class offered no sooner than the seventh working day of the month.  The temporary agreement also provides pay protection for any affected Flight Attendants between the fifth working day of the month (the contractual requirement to offer class) and the day prior to when the Company actually offers the class.  Even with this temporary extension to the Company’s requirement to offer a full dedicated RQ class, Flight Attendants who are due to take RQ may continue to exercise their contractual right to trade into the RQ slot in any regularly scheduled RT class during the month if space is available.

        This temporary agreement will take effect with the August 2020 bid month and will remain in effect through at least the December 2020 bid month.  A complete copy of the letter of agreement is available on the AFA Alaska website and can be viewed by clicking here. 

        Questions?

        If you have any questions, please contact your Local Grievance Committee.

        Filed Under: EAP/Professional Standards Committee, Government Affairs Committee, Grievance Committee, Latest News, Master Executive Council (MEC), Retirement Committee Tagged With: 2020, call to action, Congress, COVID-19, early out, Government Affairs, ground commuting, novel coronavirus, requalification training, retirement, RQ

        Early Out and Other Furlough Mitigation Options

        July 10, 2020 20:00

        Furlough mitigation resources

        AFA has compiled the following furlough mitigation resources for easy reference.

        Company resources (AAG SSO required)

        • All furlough mitigation options
          • Alaska Flight Attendant early-out & leave options
          • Compare all Flight Attendant furlough mitigation options (grid)
        • Early Out (EO)
          • FA Early Out Program Guide (aka FA Early Out Plan Document)
          • Early Out Q&A
        • Extended Leaves of Absence (ELOAs) and Enhanced Voluntary Furloughs (EVFs)
          • ELOAs and EVFs Q&A (aka Leaves Q&A)

        AFA resources

        • October 2020 Furlough Mitigations Letter of Agreement (7/8/2020) [signatures pending]
        • Reduction in Force 2020 Sideletter of Agreement (7/8/2020) [signatures pending]
        • JCBA Section 18 [Reduction in Force] and Section 27 [General – Association]

        Combined resources – “Early Out and Leave Options” informational sessions

        Management is hosting and AFA will also be co-participating in upcoming “Early Out and Leave Options” informational sessions in which all furlough mitigations will be addressed: Early Outs, Extended Leaves of Absence and Enhanced Voluntary Furloughs.

        Available Sessions – An individual calendar invite has been sent by management for each event. Please join us if you have questions!

        Tue 7/14 @ 12pm – 1pm PT    

        Thu 7/16 @ 4pm – 5pm PT

        Tue 7/21 @ 2pm – 3pm PT


        “The Numbers”

        Everyone wants to know the target numbers for the Early Out program, Extended Leaves of Absence and Enhanced Voluntary Furloughs. The MEC shared that feedback with management prior to publication of yesterday’s email announcing the EOs and other furlough mitigation options. According to the Company’s Early out Q&A (AAG SSO required), management estimates needing approximately 600 Flight Attendants to take the Early Out.

        In our June 5th “A Message About Current Events, and Planning for the Future” communication, the MEC projected that Alaska Airlines will possibly need 35%-50% less Flight Attendants systemwide—at least temporarily—beginning on October 1. We now project the impact to be fairly significantly less, but the MEC cannot say more due to non-disclosure agreements (NDAs). However, the MEC will continue to press management to be more forthcoming with projections as soon as possible.


        Company Early Out

        Management has now released the details of the Company Early Out program (AAG SSO required). As mentioned in the June 30th edition of the AFA Update, AFA did not negotiate this Early Out package. AFA approached management back in March regarding our interest in negotiating an Early Out, but management declined our offer. 

        AFA’s assessment is that the Company’s EO package will not attain even close to the desired number of takers. Candidly, the Master Executive Council (MEC) is disappointed in the Company’s EO; we had hoped the Company’s EO would be more in line with industry leading Flight Attendant EOs like at Southwest Airlines. However, the EO will interest some Flight Attendants who were already considering retirement or who are interested in early retirement.


        Involuntary Furlough (IVF) Mitigations

        No lower line averages

        Pursuant to §18.A [Involuntary Furlough Mitigation], AFA and management have been working on furlough mitigations over the past two weeks. After careful consideration and in consultation with industry experts, AFA has declined to lower the line averages or adjust the line value range. AFA already lowered the minimum domicile average line value from 78 TFP to 75 TFP in the 2014-2019 CBA, which allows individual lines to be built up to 10 TFP lower at 65 TFP. Our analysis is that the scale of anticipated reduced staffing is so great and the duration of lower lines so uncertain that these mitigations would be unacceptable to the majority and seen as a concession.

        October 2020 Furlough Mitigations Letter of Agreement

        Click here for the October 2020 Furlough Mitigations Letter of Agreement >

        Furlough mitigation enhancements and clarifications that are in addition to Extended Leaves of Absence and Voluntary Furlough provision in Section 18.A [Involuntary Furlough Mitigations]:

        • Extended Leaves of Absence of 12-month duration (ELOA-12) -> No change to contract
          • COBRA-eligible for healthcare
          • Regular 480 unpaid credit of 1.333 TFP per day
          • Base guarantee
          • See contract for additional details
        • “Enhanced” Voluntary Furloughs of 6-, 9-, 12- and 15-month durations (EVF-6, EVF-9, EVF-12 and EVF-15)
          • Company-paid healthcare premiums
          • Double 480 credit
          • Base guarantee on EVF-6 & EVF-9 (contractual voluntary furloughs have no base guarantee)
          • No base guarantee on EVF-12 or EVF-15 unless recalled June 2021 or earlier
        • Productivity Premium Program eligibility on ELOA & EVFs (and on IVF via separate email acknowledgement from management)
        • Recall procedures
          • Order of recall clarified: IVF followed by EVF (followed by ELOAs requested but not required)
          • “Live” recall or bypass form
          • Full-time student bypass for the remainder of the term while on ELOA, EVF or IVF (proof of enrollment in accredited college or university required)
        • Staffing Adjustment Leaves (SALs) -> Enhancement to §15.B [Staffing Adjustment…]
          • Offered one month at a time (in order to avoid the perception of seniority violations) but may be awarded consecutively
          • Double 480 credit
          • Company-paid healthcare premiums
        • FAs on involuntary furlough may choose to remain current by attending regulatory training (RT/RQ)
          • Company-paid healthcare premiums during the month of training
          • Out of domicile provisions if FA is required to take training out of domicile (e.g. SANFAs)
          • Positive space Company Business travel provided to and from domicile if required
        • Unemployment insurance (UI)
          • Company will not contest UI
          • Company will provide support letter to the FA
        • “Reconvene clause” in case legislation (e.g. potential extension to the CARES Act) is subsequently passed that prevents IVFs

        Reduction in Force 2020 Sideletter of Agreement

        Click here for the Reduction in Force 2020 Sideletter of Agreement >

        AFA and management recognized that references to “seniority” in §18.A [Involuntary Furlough Mitigations] and §18.K [Involuntary Furlough Seniority Retention] required clarification to reflect intent and established practice: 

        • Occupational Seniority always accrues: FAs always receive scheduled pay increases and are not negatively impacted in bidding seniority or relative seniority while on any type of leave or furlough.
        • Company Seniority always accrues: FAs always receive scheduled vacation accrual increases and are not negatively impacted for non-rev seniority while on any type of leave or furlough.
        • Longevity: 401(k) vesting and retirement eligibility are ‘frozen’ (i.e. retained but not accrued) while on certain types of leave or while on furlough.

        The parties clarified the procedures for returning from an Extended Leave of Absence under §18.A:

        • Domicile protection while on ELOA and recall in Occupational Seniority order

        The parties will allow Flight Attendants to conduct Union Business (UB) or Company Business (CB) while on a voluntary furlough under §27.AA [Union Business and/or Company Business…]:

        • Flight Attendants who routinely conduct UB and/or CB work may be potentially willing to take voluntary furloughs, and this provision would allow them to do so while continuing to provide necessary services to the Company and/or to the Association.
        • Examples: Inflight Training Instructors, Special Project work Flight Attendants and union reps

        Tell Congress: Extend the CARES Act

        If not enough Flight Attendants voluntarily take the Early Out, Extended Leave of Absence or Enhanced Voluntary Furlough, then at least some of our sisters and brothers will be involuntarily furloughed starting in October. Consequently, it is vitally important that each and every one of you help AFA-CWA, the Association of Professional Flight Attendants (APFA) and the Transport Workers Union (TWU) Local 556 achieve a six-month extension to the CARES Act in order to protect Flight Attendant jobs. Tell Congress to keep our industry intact by extending the CARES Act!


        These are extremely difficult and stressful times. Please remember that your Employee Assistance Program (EAP) Committee is always available as a support resource. As your direct representative on the MEC, your LEC president is available to answer questions or concerns that you may have about all the information presented here. Contact information for your respective LEC president can be found by clicking here. We hope to see you at one of the upcoming “Early Out and Leave Options” informational sessions on 7/14, 7/16 or 7/21!

        In Solidarity,

        Your MEC – Jeffrey Peterson, Brian Palmer, Linda Christou, Matt Cook, Terry Taylor, Steve Maller, Melissa Osborne, Tim Green and Brice McGee

        Filed Under: Latest News Tagged With: EAP, early out, ELOA, enhanced voluntary furlough, EO, EVF, extended leave of absence, furlough, furloughs, involuntary furlough, IVF, letter of agreement, LOA, reduction in force, RIF, sideletter, voluntary furlough

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