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2023 College Scholarship Opportunities

AFA International

  • As an AFA and CWA Member, you and/or certain eligible dependents have the opportunities for at least two different scholarships.
  • An additional opportunity, the Union Plus Free College Benefit, offers the ability to earn a degree with no out of pocket expense for tuition, fees, and e-books.
  • Check out the links below for eligibility requirements, application information, and other important details for each opportunity.

As an AFA and CWA Member, you and/or certain eligible dependents have the opportunities for at least two different scholarships for the pursuit of higher education.  The time for applying is now!

Brought to you by our Union, these benefits of union membership have become very popular with Members.  Please see the respective links for detailed information, and good luck in obtaining financial assistance.

AFA Dee Maki Scholarship

The Association of Flight Attendants Dee Maki Scholarship is intended to provide financial assistance to dependents of our active members who will be attending a college or university.  The deadline for applications is April 10.  Details are available on the AFA International website at http://www.afacwa.org/scholarships.

CWA Joe Beirne Scholarship

The Joe Beirne Scholarship is offered by CWA. The deadline for applications is April 30.   Details on this scholarship are on the CWA website at http://www.cwa-union.org/pages/beirne.

Union Plus Free College Benefit

In addition, there is a free college benefit available through Union Plus for active and retired Members and their families with the opportunity to earn an associate degree completely online – for FREE.  Details and an application are online at https://www.unionplusfreecollege.org.  This benefit can save you thousands of dollars.

Questions?

If you have any questions, please contact your LEC Officers

EAP/Professional Standards Committee News – March 2023

EAP/Professional Standards Committee

Our AFA EAP/Professional Standards Committee (Members helping Members) seeks to assist Members, their families, and partners experiencing personal and work-related problems that could or are affecting their health and well-being on and off the job. Our EAP committee is a Union-sponsored support service provided by Flight Attendants for Flight Attendants, their families, and partners. EAP Peer Representatives are trained to provide three distinct but interrelated services: Assessment, Support, and Referral Services; Professional Standards; and Critical Incident Response.

AFA EAP is a confidential resource available to Members, demonstrating care and concern for its Members individually and collectively.

EAP/Professional Standards Committee Chairpersons

ANCBonnie Waltersanc.eap.chair@afaalaska.org(907) 230-7208
LAXJeanne McCleave  lax.eap.chair@afaalaska.org(949) 922-1606
PDXContesa Nicolaidis  pdx.eap.chair@afaalaska.org(503) 970-6873
SANMelanie Buker   san.eap.chair@afaalaska.org(208) 890-1849
SEAAndrea Koricansea.eap.chair@afaalaska.org(206) 419-2637  
SFOZarah Cummings  sfo.eap.chair@afaalaska.org(925) 577-5733
MECElizabeth Dillon (Chairperson)
Lisa Haugen (Vice Chairperson)		eap@afaalaska.org(949) 470-0493 

DID YOU KNOW: There’s a New Program Called FAAS?

What is FAAS?

FAAS stands for Flight Attendant Addiction Support. It’s a new assistance program developed and run jointly by AFA EAP and management. Any non-probationary Flight Attendant is eligible to use the program.

What does FAAS offer?

  • FAAS is structured to encourage Flight Attendants to seek help before on-the-job misconduct occurs.
  • Those who self-disclose to the company before a work-related performance issue occurs will have access to 30 days of residential treatment at a facility fully paid for by the company,  whether you have Kaiser Insurance, Premera Blue Cross/Blue Shield, or NO Insurance.
  • AFA EAP and your Base Director/Manager will be part of your recovery support team during the treatment period.
  • Should a Flight Attendant’s substance use progress to the point that they show up at work under the influence, the Flight Attendant will have access to company-funded treatment IF the Flight Attendant self-discloses before boarding the first flight of the day and before a reasonable suspicion test is requested. 
  • Should a Flight Attendant’s on-the-job impairment result in a test positive, a pathway to return to flying for Alaska has been developed under the FAAS program following their separation.
  • FAAS is also designed to encourage co-workers to feel comfortable approaching or identifying a Flight Attendant whose impairment risks flight safety. Under FAAS, only the struggling Flight Attendant can jeopardize their job by failing to self-disclose before boarding their first flight of the day or before being identified for testing. Even then, the Flight Attendant will have a pathway for reinstatement.

Does FAAS replace AFA EAP or the Flight Attendant Drug and Alcohol Program (FADAP)?

No. AFA EAP/FADAP offers confidential assistance without company knowledge or involvement.  AFA EAP can confidentially help you decide which of these assistance programs is best for you and your work circumstances.  Unlike FAAS, AFA EAP can also work with probationary Flight Attendants and their family members.  Don’t hesitate to call any of your EAP Committee Members in a safe, confidential setting.

FADAP Contact Information

https://www.fadap.org 
Phone: (855) 33-FADAP / (855) 333-2327
Direct Line: (202) 355-6337

Did You Know: Wings of Sobriety Telephonic Meetings

Meetings are open to all Flight Attendants exploring their need for or seeking recovery from substance use disorders. Meeting times are scheduled every Wednesday at 12 PM Pacific time and Sunday at 2 PM Pacific time. Meetings generally last between 45 minutes and 1 hour. The conference call number to join is (855) 544-2320.

Reserve Committee Meeting Recap – 1st Quarter 2023

Reserve Committee

  • Our AFA Reserve Committee Chairpersons met on Thursday, March 9 to discuss their ongoing program of work to represent and advocate for our Reserve Flight Attendants.
  • The Committee also met with management to review a number of specific concerns that were brought forward by Flight Attendants.
  • Your Local Reserve Committee is available to answer questions, provide clarification, or help to resolve any reserve related issues. Please don’t hesitate to reach out!

On Thursday, March 9, representatives from our AFA Local Reserve Committees met to discuss their ongoing work to advocate for Reserve Flight Attendants. Representing you at the meeting were Heather Reier (ANC), Teran Eason (SEA), Anthony Eskander (PDX), Meghan Casey (SFO), Kanako Yamada (LAX), and Rebecca Garcia (SAN).  Also present was MEC Reserve Committee Chairperson Julie Thornton. The committee also met with Inflight Crew Scheduling Director Sara Cook and Inflight Crew Scheduling Manager Matthew Trujilo.

The committee is next scheduled to meet on Thursday, June 8th.

Topics of Discussion

The committee reviewed a number of items both during internal AFA-only conversation and when meeting with management. Some items discussed include:

  • Planned Initial Training classes for the remainder of the year. Class 3 and Class 5 were canceled, however management still intends to hire additional Flight Attendants. The number of classes and specific number of students in each class is dependent on delivery of new aircraft.
  • Increase in requests for assistance with PBS and bidding from new hires. Exploring ways to provide additional training and support in this area.
  • Crew Scheduling management changes. Sara Cook was promoted to Director of Inflight Crew Scheduling and four new Crew Scheduling Supervisors are onboarded. Management is in the process of hiring an additional manager to support operations. 
  • Issues and glitches with Crew Access affecting Reserve Flight Attendants. Reviewed where known issues are documented and newly added/fixed issues. 
  • Review of upcoming update to Crew Access software. Includes associated fixes to current issues and other improvements, and prioritization for programming fixes.
  • Probationary Flight Attendant support through the Probationary Buddy Program. Buddies are very busy supporting new Flight Attendants. Reminder to refer Probationary Flight Attendants to their Buddy for contractual questions.
  • Increase in lineholders picking up reserve days. This resulted in some increased flexibility for Reserve Flight Attendants.
  • Review of reserve utilization statistics. Reserve utilization is approximately 82% in all bases. Reserve coverage is anticipated to be approximately 21-20% for the remainder of Quarter 1 and Quarter 2.
  • Request for management to decrease the Adequate Reserve Coverage (ARC) maximum. Goal of providing additional flexibility for shifting reserve days. Management agreed to review possible changes.
  • Review of contractual language related to Reserve Flight Attendants calling in well.
  • Reminder of the AFA Alaska Online Support Center. New hire Flight Attendants can report issues, raise concerns, or ask questions.

What The Committee Is Working On

  1. Assisting Probationary Flight Attendants Through the Probationary Buddy Program.   Answering questions from and providing support to probationary Flight Attendants through an expanded AFA Probationary Buddy program.
  2. Addressing Reserve Contractual Concerns.  Researching and investigating reports from Reserve Flight Attendants and actively ensuring management is complying with our contract.
  3. Developing Additional Tools & Resources for New Flight Attendants.  Working to create documents to provide user friendly, easy-to-digest resources about the Collective Bargaining Agreement and other job-related information for new Flight Attendants.

We Want to Hear From You!

Do you have feedback for the committee, concerns you’d like to share, or items that you’d like brought up with management?  Please let us know!  Your Local Reserve Committee is your voice to management.  You can open a support request on the AFA Alaska Online Support Center or contact us directly using the information on the Reserve Committee page of the AFA Alaska website.

AFA Alaska News in Review – March 10, 2023

In This Edition

March 2023 MEC Meeting Recap

Originally posted March 9, 2023

Our AFA Alaska Master Executive Council (MEC) met this week on Monday, March 6, and Tuesday, March 7, to conduct their ongoing work to represent our Flight Attendants. The MEC also met with executive management and a group of union leaders from other company workgroups to receive updates and discuss concerns affecting employees company-wide. The next Regular MEC Meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, April 11, and Wednesday, April 12. Please don’t hesitate to contact your LEC President if you have any questions.

Read More >

Help Support SkyWest Flight Attendant Organizing in LAX & SAN!

Originally posted March 10, 2023

SkyWest Flight Attendants are organizing to form their Union and join AFA-CWA! Help support their efforts by joining in an upcoming SkyWest AFA “Concourse Chats” visibility event. The goal of the events is to engage 1-on-1, in-person and have conversations with SkyWest Flight Attendants to learn their issues and priorities and invite them to be a part of the campaign by signing a card, wearing a pin, and/or getting more involved.

Read More >

Next Week’s Events

Wednesday, March 15Council 19 SEA Local Council Meeting
Wednesday, March 15Council 39 PDX Local Council Meeting
Thursday, March 16Council 15 SAN/Council 18 LAX Joint Local Council Meeting
Thursday, March 16Council 35 SFO Local Council Meeting
Thursday, March 16Alternate Dispute Resolution (ADR)

See the MEC Event Calendar >

Find Us on Social Media

You can find the most up-to-date official information on our AFA Alaska social media accounts.  Click below and follow so you can stay connected!

Help Support SkyWest Flight Attendant Organizing in LAX & SAN!

AFA International

SkyWest Flight Attendants are organizing to form their Union and join AFA-CWA! Help support their efforts by joining in an upcoming SkyWest AFA “Concourse Chats” visibility event. The goal of the events is to engage 1-on-1, in-person and have conversations with SkyWest Flight Attendants to learn their issues and priorities and invite them to be a part of the campaign by signing a card, wearing a pin, and/or getting more involved.

Upcoming visibility events in LAX and SAN are next week! Here are the details:

LAXMonday, March 13, 202312 to 4 PM PTMeet Up Location TBD
SANWednesday, March 15, 202312 to 4 PM PTMeet Up Location TBD

For more information or to sign up to participate, please contact AFA Campaign Representative Gailen David at gdavid@afacwa.org.

2026 AFA Board of Directors Convention: What You Need To Know

Next week, our Master Executive Council (MEC) Officers, Local Executive Council (LEC) Presidents, and several other LEC Officers, Committee Chairpersons, and Committee Members will attend the 53rd Annual AFA Board of Directors (BOD) Convention in Portland, Oregon. They will join representatives from other AFA airlines to address our Union’s business at the international level. Watch […]

Hawaiian Flight Attendant Seattle Domicile Negotiations – March 2026 Update

Management currently requires Flight Attendants to provide proof of relocation to receive the flat-rate moving expense, a policy that the AFA is formally challenging through the grievance process. While this dispute is ongoing, Flight Attendants able to submit proof of relocation must submit two forms of documentation, such as a lease or updated driver’s license, within 60 days of transfer if they wish to be paid under management’s terms. The union continues to advocate for a fairer process and encourages members to keep records of all related interactions.

Joint Contract Negotiations Session 12 – February 2026

During this negotiation session, we made progress on Sections 15 (Leaves of Absence) and 22 (Expenses). The JNC advocated for positive developments from the Hawaiian CBA to strengthen our proposals. We also introduced our initial proposal for Section 28 (Domiciles) and remain committed to meaningful improvements in all areas of discussion.

Reminder: Don’t Miss Next Week’s MEC Town Hall!

Mark your calendar—Tuesday, March 3, is almost here! There’s still time to register for our Alaska + Hawaiian Town Hall and hear directly from your MEC Officers: MEC President Tim Green, MEC Vice President Brice McGee, and MEC Secretary-Treasurer Paul Ikioka. Join us for the latest updates and get answers to your questions. The Details What […]

Uniform Committee Meeting Recap – 1st Quarter 2026

This message is for pre-merger Alaska Flight Attendants On Thursday, February 19, our AFA Local Uniform Committee Chairpersons met to discuss their ongoing work to represent Flight Attendants and push for improvements in the workplace. Representing you at the meeting were Kim Mazzolini (ANC), Dena Heath (SEA), Bob Moore (PDX), Lisa Mueller (SFO), Heather Holmes […]

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