Flight Attendants who are using iPads to trade are asking about the bookmark (url) for the new “Drop to Open Time” function. Here it is:
https://crxs.alaskaair.com/faDropAsmt.do
Enjoy!
In solidarity,
Your AFA Scheduling Committee
Association of Flight Attendants-CWA Alaska Airlines Master Executive Council
Flight Attendants who are using iPads to trade are asking about the bookmark (url) for the new “Drop to Open Time” function. Here it is:
https://crxs.alaskaair.com/faDropAsmt.do
Enjoy!
In solidarity,
Your AFA Scheduling Committee
On July 8, 2015, our Flight Attendant Manual (FAM) was updated. One of the updates in “Standards” Section 7.100 page 6 regarding sleeping and the appearance of sleeping has raised a lot of concerns.
FAM Section 7.100 now states that if a Flight Attendant is in uniform, regardless of his or her on/off duty status, a FA is not allowed to sleep in the presence of customers. The only exception while in uniform is if the FA is deadheading and assigned a passenger seat.
AFA realizes there are looming questions regarding commuters sleeping in uniform while on board an aircraft. Management has assured AFA they will be issuing a communication addressing this concern very soon.
AFA has strong convictions about this issue in part because management recently issued a termination to a Flight Attendant who gave the appearance of sleeping while in uniform—and on sit time no less! The changes to FAM Section 7.100 were largely unaddressed in the manual revision summary: the only mention is “Revised Personal Conduct.” AFA believes that if a longtime policy is changed and that change could lead to termination on the first offense, management should address the new policy with proper notice and much more vigor than they did.
AFA made several attempts to engage management to develop a reasonable sleeping policy. Unfortunately, management chose to go in a different direction despite our concerns regarding inadequate rest facilities provided for Flight Attendants.
To date there is no official fatigue policy. If you find yourself too fatigued to fly or starting to doze off while on a sit and in public view, our recommendation is for you to call in sick on line. Additional information can be found in the AFA Alaska communication from January 8, 2015 “Too Fatigued to Fly.”
This is extremely important: any time you are too fatigued to fly or if you believe you might have inadvertently nodded off (i.e. given the appearance of sleeping) while in the presence of customers, immediately file an Aviation Safety Action Program (ASAP) report. This is so the FAA can track Flight Attendant fatigue, which can help lead to regulatory changes. The other benefit is that if the ASAP Event Review Committee (ERC) accepts your report, you will not receive discipline for the contents of the report according to the terms of the ASAP Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) and the “ASAP and Discipline” Letter of Agreement from July 25, 2006.
Questions? Contact one of your Local Executive Council officers.
In Solidarity,
Your MEC – Jeffrey Peterson, Brian Palmer, Yvette Gesch, Lisa Pinkston, Laura Masserant, Cathy Gwynn, Sandra Morrow and Stephen Couckuyt; MEC Grievance Committee chairperson Jennifer Wise MacColl and Grievance Committee member Stephanie Adams
Some big changes are coming with our new Open Time system. To help with the transition we’d like to point out some highlights and give helpful hints.
For a full review of the new Open Time, check out the video that was produced during the TA-2 Roadshows:
Correction: Trading for any newly established domicile(s) would begin at 9am, not 3pm as stated in the video.
Questions? Contact your Local Executive Council (LEC) officers or your local Scheduling Committee members.
In solidarity,
Your MEC – Jeffrey Peterson, Brian Palmer, Yvette Gesch, Lisa Pinkston, Laura Masserant, Cathy Gwynn, Sandra Morrow and Stephen Couckuyt; MEC Grievance Committee chairperson Jennifer Wise MacColl and MEC Grievance Committee member Stephanie Adams
Your Contract Committee – MEC President Jeffrey Peterson, Kristy Stratton, Lisa Pinkston, Jake Jones, Christina Frees and AFA Senior Staff Negotiator Paula Mastrangelo
The Master Executive Council (MEC) has recently filed numerous grievances on your behalf.
First and foremost, we filed and settled two very important grievances:
Grievance No. 36-99-2-17-15: Assigning a Failure to Report after Successful Check In.
This grievance was filed due to the Company’s violation of the Collective Bargaining Agreement, Section 32 [Attendance Policy], when it assigned failure to report occurrences after a Flight Attendant’s successful check in.
In certain circumstances management had been assigning a “Late Report” when a Flight Attendant arrived late to the gate or arrived late to the gate at RON, this was after a successful scan in at the beginning of her/his sequence. AFA’s long-standing position has been that “Late Report” occurrences only applied when a Flight Attendant failed to scan in at domicile. All other situations, which might result in a Flight Attendant arriving late to the aircraft, were handled as general performance issues; these will now be referred to as “Late Arrival to Aircraft”. Please note this does not change a Flight Attendant’s requirement to be at the aircraft 45 minutes prior to departure.
Management agreed and a settlement was reached with the following clarifications:
1) A Flight Attendant may only be assessed a Late Report (formerly Failure to Report) when s/he checks in after the scheduled check in time and has not been assessed a No-Show for the same event;
2) When a Flight Attendant is late to the aircraft at any time during a scheduled sequence, s/he will not be assessed any attendance points, these occurrences will be considered a performance issue and will be handled under the Company’s progressive discipline policy; and
3) The Company agrees to remove attendance points from any Flight Attendant who received them for being late to the aircraft during a scheduled sequence, provided the points were assigned in the 18 months preceding May 19, 2015.
If you believe that you may have been assessed a Failure to Report incorrectly and it occurred after November 19, 2013, please reach out to a local grievance representative for assistance.
A copy of the settlement language can be found by clicking here.
Grievance No.: 36-99-2-26-15: Quarterly Productivity Premium.
The second grievance settlement involved Section 21.R [QPP]. It was filed due to Management’s position that Flight Attendants who had not received a PBS bid award for one or more months of the quarter were excluded from the Quarterly Productivity Premium. A copy of the settlement language can be found in its entirety here.
Management granted the following two grievances:
Grievance No.: 36-99-2-11-15: Violation of Section 27.N [New Hire Initial Training Presentation].
The Company’s violation of Section 27.N, when it failed to provide the Association one hour for the purpose of new hire orientation during a regularly scheduled training day.
Resolution: Management has agreed to ensure that a full hour is provided.
Grievance No.: 36-99-2-13-15-Failing to Provide Automated Trading of 4K Pairings.
The Company’s violation of Section 10.DD.6 [Long Stage Length (“4K”) Duty Period] and 12.C.1 [Trading Procedures], when it failed to automate trading of Long Stage Length Duty Period (“4K”) Pairings. In addition when it violated the Contract Implementation Schedule Letter of Agreement paragraph numbers six* (“One-hundred and twenty days after DOS-but no later than May 1, 2015,…”) and nine* (“The Company agrees to make a good faith effort to meet the above implementation time frames…”), when it failed to notify the Association of the delay and discuss the circumstances and necessary adjustments to the implementation schedule.
Resolution: Manual trading is in effect until the next emaestro release scheduled for September 15, 2015. Bulletin 2015-0182 issued on July 16, 2015, addresses how to manually trade “4K” pairings.
The following grievances have been filed and are still pending:
Grievance No.: 36-99-2-15-15-Limiting Access to the SAN Domicile.
The Company’s violation of Section 28.I [Company Provided Computers and Printers at Domiciles], when it limited access to the SAN Domicile including contractually required resources to only those Flight Attendants based in SAN.
Grievance No.: 36-99-2-19-15-Failing to Pay Flight Attendants for Reasonable Suspicion Drug/Alcohol Testing.
The Company’s violation of Addendum to Section 21 [Compensation], when it failed to pay Flight Attendants for reasonable suspicion drug & alcohol testing.
Grievance No.: 36-99-2-20-15-Converting a Line Holding Flight Attendant to ER Reserve Outside of her/his Contactable Period.
The Company’s violation of Section 11.C.3.b.6 [Conversion of Reserves to ER] and 11.C.3.c [ER Contactibility], when it converted a line holding Flight Attendant to ER Reserve outside of her/his contactable period.
Grievance No.: 36-99-2-21-15-Section 21.M Compensation.
The Company’s violation of Section 21.M [Pay Protection Due to Weather, Mechanical or to Suit Company Convenience], when it removed a Flight Attendant from a trip and failed to pay protect her.
Grievance No.: 36-99-2-22-15-Violation of Past Practice Regarding Manual Revision/Emergency Interim Bulletin (EIB) Insertion Timelines.
The Company’s violation of past practice regarding manual revision/emergency interim bulletin (EIB) insertion timelines, which fails to provide Flight Attendants sufficient time to thoroughly read and insert their revisions and/or EIB’s. Long standing past practice is articulated in the Flight Attendant Manual 6.500 page 1, dated July 6, 2012, which states: “Insert, post and record manual revisions within 14 days of receipt, no later than 30 days after distribution.” A new EIB 14-40 effective November 25, 2014, now states: “The holder of the FAM shall insert revisions/EIBs on or before the effective date or prior to the first assignment following the effective date, whichever comes first.”
Grievance No.: 36-99-2-23-15-Beyond Service Training Exceeding Contractual Training Hours.
The Company’s violation of Section 30.A.2 [Recurrent Training and Other Company-Required (Non-Computer-Based) Training; Hours], by conducting Beyond Service Training after 5:00PM local time, failing to provide a clear break between required training and the optional “Happy Hour” and failing to provide transportation information to Flight Attendants who choose to depart promptly at 5:00PM.
Grievance No.: 36-99-2-24-15-Ground Floor Lodging While on Company Business.
The Company’s violation of Section 34 [Hotels], when it failed to avoid ground floor lodging for Flight Attendants attending company required Beyond Service training.
Grievance No.: 36-99-2-29-15-Section 28.G.6 Commuter Boarding Priority. The Company’s violation of Section 28.G.6 [Commuter Policy], when it allowed Company employees (and their dependents) on pleasure travel to be given higher boarding priority than commuting Flight Attendants.
The next step is to move forward to arbitration on any grievances that cannot be resolved appropriately. In addition, we continue to file disciplinary grievances, which occur on a near daily basis. Many of these will move forward to arbitration as well. All Flight Attendants system wide are impacted when AFA cannot resolve issues with management prior to arbitration. AFA is committed to resolving these issues and will soon be scheduling new arbitration dates for the year 2016. Periodic grievance updates will follow; however should you have questions on specific grievances, please reach out to your local grievance representative.
In Solidarity,
Your MEC – Jeffrey Peterson, Brian Palmer, Yvette Gesch, Lisa Pinkston, Laura Masserant, Cathy Gwynn, Sandra Morrow and Stephen Couckuyt; MEC Grievance Committee chairperson Jennifer Wise MacColl, MEC Grievance Committee member Stephanie Adams and AFA Senior Staff Attorney Kimberley Chaput
AFA Grievance No. 36-99-2-17-15 Failure to Report or Late Report Settlement
Due to resignations in AFA Council 30 Anchorage, Vice President Lisa Pinkston became Local Executive Council (LEC) president of Council 30 ANC on August 1, 2015, pursuant to Article III.C.5.a.(1) [Local Council and Local Executive Councils à Local Council Officers à Council Officer Vacancies] of the AFA-CWA Constitution & Bylaws (C&B).
Pursuant to Article III.C.5.c.(3) [Local Council and Local Executive Councils à Local Council Officers à Council Officer Vacancies] of the AFA-CWA C&B, a special officer election was held to fill vacancies for the positions of Council 30 ANC vice president and secretary. The special election ended at 8am ADT this morning – August 6, 2015. The certified election results are as follows:
Vice President: Karen Ferrell
Secretary: Laura Rueckert
The officers will complete the current term in election Category III that began on January 1, 2014, and will run through December 31, 2016. Nominations and elections are governed by procedures outlined in Article VIII [Nomination and Election of Officers] and the AFA Policy Manual in the AFA-CWA C&B.
The Master Executive Council (MEC) congratulates the officers-elect and we sincerely thank the former officers who served our union and those who stepped forward to run in the election.
In solidarity,
Your MEC –Jeffrey Peterson, Brian Palmer, Yvette Gesch, Lisa Pinkston, Laura Masserant, Cathy Gwynn, Sandra Morrow and Stephen Couckuyt
Our Master Executive Council (MEC) will be conducting interviews for one (1) Member to serve on the AFA System Board of Adjustment. 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.
Our MEC thanks Elizabeth Dillon for the significant role she played in supporting Flight Attendants through her service as MEC EAP/Professional Standards Committee Chairperson. MEC Committee Vice Chairperson Lisa Haugen will succeed Elizabeth as the new MEC Committee Chairperson, with the Vice Chairperson position becoming vacant. Interviews for a new Vice Chairperson will be conducted at the June Regular MEC Meeting.
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 […]