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Supreme Court Ruling on Bernstein v. Virgin America

Master Executive Council (MEC)

  • The Supreme Court of the United States issued a ruling today that denied an appeal from Alaska Airlines to reconsider a lower court’s ruling in the case of Bernstein v. Virgin America.
  • The lawsuit claimed that various California labor laws had been violated related to wages, hours worked, pay, and meal and rest breaks.  The suit was originally filed against Virgin America and became the responsibility of Alaska Airlines after the merger between the two companies.
  • Management has distributed multiple employee communications complaining that they will now have to obey the law but has not shown that they are focused on practical solutions.  AFA stands ready to work out a solution with management that is compliant with the law and is a mutually agreeable path forward for all stakeholders.

Earlier today, the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) denied a petition by Alaska Airlines to hear further arguments about Bernstein v. Virgin America, which means that an earlier ruling by the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals now stands. Click here for the SCOTUS docket info >

Background

The Bernstein lawsuit was brought forward by several Legacy Virgin America (L-VX) Flight Attendants prior to the merger between Virgin America and Alaska Airlines. The represented class of aggrieved employees was broadened under the California Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA) to include all former and current L-VX FAs based in California. Alaska Airlines absorbed Virgin America’s standing in the case due to the merger.

Bernstein argued violations of California labor law specific to wages, hours worked, pay statements, final payment and meal & rest breaks. The CA hour and wage violations were asserted due to L-VX FAs not being in a collective bargaining agreement (CBA) at the time the suit was filed. However, the meal & rest break laws do not have a CBA carve out and therefore this ruling does impact all CA-based FAs today.

AFA’s mitigation efforts and industry’s response

In an effort to address the potential implications of Bernstein, AFA International wrote to the heads of all the major airlines, including Alaska Airlines, and to the CEO of the industry trade group Airlines for America (A4A). In those letters, AFA expressed interest in working with industry to accommodate operational needs while also securing appropriate meal and rest breaks for Flight Attendants.

Click here for AFA’s letter to CEO Alaska Air Group >

Click here for A4A’s response to AFA >

AFA couldn’t disagree more with A4A’s response. We believe that when parties come together and discuss the issue there is always a solution.

What’s next?

In our opinion, management’s various communications are largely speculative and suggest that somehow safety provisions and meal and rest breaks cannot coexist. Arguably, the meal & rest requirements are applicable only to CA-based FAs working for a CA-based airline solely on intra-CA flights (e.g., SFO-LAX but not SFO-JFK). Rather than focus on practical solutions, management simply continues to gripe about having to comply with this law. As the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals already told them more than a year ago, there are many ways to comply with this law. Let’s not forget that when management references quality of life, that’s exactly what providing meal and rest breaks are addressing.

Just like AFA did by leading the way in securing paycheck protection for workers while ensuring the survival of the airline industry during the pandemic, we are ready to work out a solution with management on this issue. Now it’s up to management to engage with Labor and other stakeholders to find a mutually agreeable path forward for all parties.

June 2022 MEC Meeting Recap

Master Executive Council (MEC)

  • Our AFA Alaska Master Executive Council (MEC) met this week on Tuesday, June 14 and Wednesday, June 15 to conduct their ongoing work to represent our Flight Attendants.
  • As part of the meeting, the MEC met with members of inflight, labor relations, and executive management to discuss issues and concerns that are facing our work group and need to be addressed.
  • The next Regular MEC Meeting is scheduled to take place on Tuesday, July 12 and Wednesday, July 13.  Please don’t hesitate to reach out to your LEC President if you have any questions.

The June 2022 Regular MEC Meeting was held this week on Tuesday, June 14 and Wednesday, June 15.  The meeting consisted of updates provided by our MEC Officers, LEC Presidents, Grievance Committee, and Scheduling Committee.  Our MEC also reviewed written reports submitted by other AFA MEC Committee Chairpersons about their current programs of work. 

System Board of Adjustment Interviews

Our MEC spent part of Tuesday interviewing candidates for the System Board of Adjustment position that was previously posted in April.   Members of the System Board of Adjustment are responsible for arbitrating any disputes or grievances that may arise under the terms of the Collective Bargaining Agreement between Alaska Airlines and its Flight Attendants.  Our MEC would like to thank all of the candidates who expressed a willingness to serve and interviewed for the positions.

After extensive discussion and thorough consideration, the voting members of the MEC (LEC Presidents) have re-appointed Sandra Morrow to the position.  Sandra’s term of appointment will begin on July 1, 2022 and conclude on June 30, 2024.

Meeting with Management

As part of most Regular MEC Meetings, our MEC meets with management to review current issues and challenges that Flight Attendants are facing.  Attendees from management this month included Vice President of Inflight Matt Prainito, Managing Director of Inflight Operations Michaela Littman, Managing Director of Inflight Strategy & Support Gloria Chow, Director of Inflight Crew Scheduling Denia Pisia, Managing Director of Operations Staffing & Resource Management Brittany Audette, and Managing Director of Labor Relations Carmen Williams.

Some of the topics that were discussed include:

  • Base visits by new Vice President of Inflight.  New VP of Inflight Matt Prainito will be conducted base visits this week and next week.  He will be attending Initial Training starting at the end of the month.
  • COVID points forgiveness.  Our MEC has formally requested that management resume forgiveness of attendance points for COVID-related absences.  
  • Quarterly Point Reduction Form (QPRF) errors.  If a mistake is made by a Flight Attendant when submitting a QPRF (e.g. selecting wrong start day of a sequence), management will deny the form and not give the Flight Attendant any opportunity to make corrections.  Our MEC requests that management provide notification to Flight Attendants in these instances and give them the opportunity to correct the error.
  • Distribution of Flight Attendant staffing by base.  Our MEC has requested that management add staffing to all bases.  Bases outside of SEA need additional Flight Attendants to provide relief, especially to Reserve Flight Attendants.
  • Cross-utilization of Reserve Flight Attendants between domiciles.  Our MEC has requested that management discontinue the practice of cross-utilizing reserves between domiciles, particularly between LAX and SAN.  Excessive use of this practice is unnecessarily burdensome on Reserve F/As.  With current staffing levels, our MEC believes there is no need for management to continue this practice.
  • Flight Attendant Initial Training (IT) classes.  Management is evaluating whether or not additional IT classes will be held this year on top of those already scheduled.
  • Service flights during Initial Training (IT).  Management would like to bring service flight back to the IT curriculum and is examining ways to do so.
  • Organizational changes in Crew Scheduling.  Some Crew Scheduling Duty Managers have taken positions elsewhere in the company.  The positions will be backfilled by new Crew Scheduling Supervisor positions.
  • Delays in getting Flight Attendants information during irregular operations.  There is a perception that Pilots often receive information about cancellations, delays, hotels for irops, etc. significantly before Flight Attendants do.  Management needs to take steps to address this perceived disparity and ensure that Flight Attendants are not left behind. 

MEC Policy & Procedure Manual Amendments

The AFA Alaska MEC Policy & Procedure Manual contains a provision requiring that the document be reviewed at least annually for possible updates and amendments.  Our MEC conducted that annual review during this meeting.  Of the 21 proposed agenda items, 19 were adopted.  One agenda item was amended and tabled until the next MEC meeting and another was referred back to the originator to be rewritten and resubmitted.  The agenda items that were adopted will be incorporated into the manual and posted to the AFA Alaska website early next week.

Questions?

If you have any questions about this month’s Regular MEC Meeting, please reach out to your LEC President.

May 2022 MEC Meeting Recap

Master Executive Council (MEC)

  • Our AFA Alaska Master Executive Council (MEC) met this week on Tuesday, May 24 to conduct their ongoing work to represent our Flight Attendants.
  • As part of the meeting, our MEC joined the May 24th Negotiating Committee Listening Session to hear directly from our Flight Attendants about experiences, thoughts, and ideas for upcoming contract negotiations.
  • The next Regular MEC Meeting is scheduled to take place on Tuesday, June 14 and Wednesday, June 15.  Please don’t hesitate to reach out to your LEC President if you have any questions.

The May 2022 Regular MEC Meeting was held this week on Tuesday, May 24.  The meeting consisted of updates provided by our MEC Officers, LEC Presidents, Grievance Committee, and Scheduling Committee.  Our MEC also reviewed written reports submitted by other AFA MEC Committee Chairpersons about their current programs of work.  In addition, the proposed 2022-23 fiscal year MEC budget was approved at the meeting by the voting members of our MEC (LEC Presidents).

Negotiating Committee Listening Session

Our MEC joined the scheduled May 24th Negotiating Committee Listening Session to directly hear some of the thoughts, ideas, and challenges that are being shared with our Negotiating Committee as they gather feedback from our Flight Attendant group.  Thank you to everyone who has gotten involved in the process and participated in or is planning to attend a listening session.  If you’re interested in signing up for one of the remaining listening sessions, you can find more information on our Contract 2022 website.     

No Meeting with Management This Month

With the AFA Board of Directors Meeting having been held earlier in the month, this month’s MEC Meeting was scheduled as a one-day event.  Given the shortened meeting length and full schedule, it was not possible for our MEC to meet with management as part of this month’s MEC Meeting.  Our MEC will resume standing meetings with management during the June 2022 Regular MEC Meeting. 

Questions?

If you have any questions about this month’s Regular MEC Meeting, please reach out to your LEC President.

Tell Management: It’s Time To Make it Right!

Master Executive Council (MEC)

  • Our MEC will be approaching management this week to discuss a meaningful remedy to the recent bidding errors and delays.
  • We have heard loud and clear that Flight Attendants expect that any remedy will include an element of compensation in order to hold management accountable.
  • Stand in solidarity and support our MEC by sending management a letter telling them it’s time to make it right!

Now that bids have finally been awarded for June 2022, it is time to focus our attention on addressing management’s continued disregard for our collective bargaining agreement by publishing bid packets that are full of errors and failing to award bids in a contractually compliant manner.  Our Master Executive Council (MEC) has heard loud and clear from our Flight Attendants that you expect management to provide a meaningful remedy to the situation that includes compensation for their continued violation of contractual obligations.  We could not agree with you more and will be approaching management this week to make this request on behalf of all Flight Attendants.

TAKE ACTION: Stand in Solidarity and Let Management Hear Our Voices!

Our MEC needs your support to let management know just how serious we are about holding them accountable.  Take action now and send management a letter telling them that it’s time to make it right!  We’ve made it easy, just click the link below.  A template letter has already been written for you, all you need to do is enter your contact information.

Click here to send management your letter

We must show management that we are tired of their excuses and demand that they hold themselves accountable in the same way they hold Flight Attendants accountable.  Let management know that we stand together in solidarity and tell them it’s time to make it right!

The Saga Continues: June 2022 Bid Awards Delayed

Master Executive Council (MEC)

  • Due to hundreds of errors identified in the June bid packet, our MEC has insisted that management conduct a systemwide rebid.
  • Management sent a communication by company email to all Flight Attendants earlier today with details on the new bidding timeline, which opened today at 9 AM PDT and will now close at 9 AM PDT on Monday, May 16.
  • It is well past time for management to take ownership of their repeated errors, actually fix the problems, and honor our contract!

June 2022 Bid awards will be delayed. 

Errors affecting over 500 positions throughout the system have been identified in the June bid packet, resulting in our MEC demanding a system-wide rebid. The errors include: flights that no longer exist, miscoded DHD Flights, inaccurate TFP, and inaccurate report times. When our AFA PBS Subcommittee discovered these errors and brought them to our MEC’s attention, the MEC called an emergency meeting and met with management to discuss our options.

After carefully considering the feedback following last month’s bidding errors, our MEC unanimously voted for a system-wide rebid to rectify these errors’ impact during bidding. Realizing the value we place on our schedules and the expectation of them being awarded accurately, we felt it necessary to correct these errors before proceeding with bid awards. A rebid will delay awards, trading, and planning for the month of June. While this may be frustrating to some, a rebid allows us all to evaluate the corrected pairings and honor seniority.   

While management continues to tell us they will do better, it is apparent we have very different definitions of “doing better.”  Our MEC made that point abundantly clear to management and explained how angry and frustrated Flight Attendants are with the many failures and the level of incompetence experienced lately. Management has no problem holding Flight Attendants responsible for the most minute concerns, yet they are unwilling to hold themselves accountable for their repeated errors and violating their contractual obligations.  Management doesn’t appear phased by the high attrition rate or rock-bottom morale – it’s almost as if they don’t CARE how their decisions impact us.  But they are now on notice and fully aware that this latest “screw up” has further eroded confidence (if there is any left) in their ability to manage this workgroup. 

Flight Attendants do not need another apology from management. Instead, management should look in the mirror and see the mess staring back at them and begin to make things right. They need to show that they’re willing to walk their talk…and “do the right thing.”

Refreshed Inflight Mobile Device (IMD) Distribution

This message is for pre-merger Alaska Flight Attendants Management has recently informed our Master Executive Council (MEC) that they are distributing new Inflight Mobile Devices (IMDs) to Flight Attendants with devices nearing the end of their lifecycle. The specific schedule for this distribution will be communicated by management separately. Flight Attendants with the oldest devices […]

Scheduling Committee Meeting Recap – September 2025

This message is for pre-merger Alaska Flight Attendants On Tuesday, September 23, our pre-merger Alaska AFA Scheduling Committee Chairpersons and Representatives met in person at Alaska Airlines Corporate Headquarters 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), […]

Meet Our Pre-Merger Alaska Committee Chairperson & Representatives

This message is for pre-merger Alaska Flight Attendants We’re excited to introduce the first group of pre-merger Alaska MEC Committee Chairpersons and Representatives for the upcoming MEC Officer term. They’ll begin transitioning into their roles over the next few months and officially start their terms on January 1, 2026. Below, you’ll find brief biographies that […]

Inflight Service Committee Meeting Recap – 3rd Quarter 2025

On Thursday, September 18, our AFA Inflight Service Committee Chairpersons met to discuss their ongoing efforts to represent our Flight Attendants and advocate for improvements in our workplace. Although our Inflight Service Committee has now merged, meetings with management continue to focus primarily on the Alaska or Hawaiian brands individually. This particular meeting was centered […]

Vacation Survey Closing Soon

There’s just 1 DAY LEFT to complete the crucial vacation survey that will help shape future provisions—your insights are essential for advocating the best outcomes for all Flight Attendants. The survey is currently open and will remain available until Wednesday, September 24 at 12 PM PT.

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