At the January meeting of the Master Executive Council (MEC) earlier this week, your MEC interviewed candidates for the position of MEC Scheduling Committee Vice Chairperson for Pairing Construction, commonly referred to as the AFA Pairing Analyst.  In total, four candidates interviewed for the position (one Anchorage-based flight attendant, two Seattle-based flight attendants and one Los Angeles-based flight attendant).  The MEC sincerely thanks the candidates for stepping forward.  After much discussion, the MEC has appointed Karen Ferrell to the position.

About Karen

Karen has worked for Alaska Airlines for over 37 years in various job capacities. Currently she is an Anchorage-based flight attendant and has been for 17 years. Karen is also the AFA Council 30 Anchorage vice president and Local Executive Council (LEC) co-chair of the Scheduling Committee.

Karen says, “I have always been interested in the scheduling aspect of our job, and before the current system sat with [Anchorage based flight attendant and former AFA line builder] Anita Davis on a few occasions to try to learn and understand what was then ‘line building.’ …Over the last several years, the quality of our pairings has continued to deteriorate. And though I understand there are many variables to consider, it is my hope that there is a solution that will satisfy the Company’s desire to save money AND create a variety of pairings that can satisfy the diverse needs of our work group.”

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The MEC thanks MEC Scheduling Committee Chairperson Jake Jones for continuing to run pairing solutions on behalf of AFA until Karen can be brought up to speed. She is scheduled to attend training at a Jeppesen training facility in Montreal in early April. Congratulations, Karen!

In Solidarity,

Your MEC – Jeffrey Peterson, Brian Palmer, Yvette Gesch, Lisa Pinkston, Laura Masserant, Cathy Gwynn, Sandra Morrow, Stephen Couckuyt; MEC Scheduling Committee Chairperson Jake Jones; and AFA Pairing Analyst Karen Ferrell