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Association of Flight Attendants-CWA Alaska Airlines Master Executive Council

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Masks Are No Longer Required in Airports or Onboard

The CDC and TSA report the federal mask mandate is no longer in effect after today’s court ruling. The Administration is still reviewing its legal options for addressing the issue of executive authority to issue public health initiatives. 

Additionally, Alaska Airlines management just announced via multiple channels that the mask mandate is lifted effective immediately on all aircraft. This policy change has been picked by media outlets, so it is very likely that passengers will be reading this information possibly before crews hear about it.

We have asked management to push an ACARS message to all aircraft, which we are told should be happening soon–if it hasn’t already.

April 2022 MEC Meeting Recap

Master Executive Council (MEC)

  • Our AFA Alaska Master Executive Council (MEC) met this week on Tuesday, April 12 and Wednesday, April 13 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, May 24.  Please don’t hesitate to reach out to your LEC President if you have any questions.

The April 2022 Regular MEC Meeting was held this week on Tuesday, April 12 and Wednesday, April 13.  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. 

MEC Mobilization Committee Chairperson Interviews

Part of Tuesday was spent interviewing candidates for the MEC Mobilization Committee Chairperson position who will be responsible for coordinating mobilization activities across all six bases during upcoming contract negotiations.  Our MEC would like to thank all of the candidates who expressed a willingness to serve and interviewed for the positions.  We’ll have more information tomorrow morning about the outcome of the interviews.

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 EVP & COO Constance von Muehlen, Managing Director of Inflight Operations Michaela Littman, Director of Inflight Crew Scheduling Denia Pisia, Vice President of Labor Relations Jenny Wetzel, and Director of Payroll Leah Ables.

Some of the topics that were discussed include:

  • Leave and absence management issues.  The approval process has been slow and employees have not been receiving timely responses to inquiries and requests.
  • PBS bid award delays and frustration surrounding management errors (note: the discussion with management took place before the bid award publishing deadline and a contractual violation had not occurred yet).
  • April OPR goals and management’s claim that inflight did not meet the safety goal due to a partial slide event.  Based on information published on Alaska’s World, inflight did meet the goal as there is no stipulation that a slide event causes the goal to be missed.  Our MEC has requested that management pay out according to the goals that they published.
  • Pilot staffing and associated flight cancellations.  Management has indicated they plan to make schedule adjustments in May based on the amount of flying remaining in open time after pilot bidding is complete.
  • Excessive use of reassignments by Crew Scheduling and frustration that Flight Attendants have an expectation to work the trips they bid/picked up when they come to work.
  • Spring incentive premium and feedback received from Flight Attendants about how the incentive was constructed.  There is significant dissatisfaction about vacation pay being excluded from Worked TFP and the high threshold necessary to receive the incentive payout.  
  • Pairing construction and cost analysis.  AFA has a long-standing request that management analyze pairings after the bid period is complete to determine what pairings actually end up costing the company.  This data could potentially be used to support changes in pairing construction to reduce undesirable trips that end up costing the company more money in the long run.
  • Company marketing activities on social media, particularly on TikTok.  Looking for answers from management as to what the intent of the content is and who it is being marketed toward. 

Questions?

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

Delayed Publication of May 2022 Bid Awards

Master Executive Council (MEC)

Like all of you, the MEC is extremely frustrated by management’s unacceptable violation of Section 10.J.8 of our collective bargaining agreement through their failure to post May 2022 bid awards on time. We will file a contractual grievance on behalf of all Flight Attendants for this violation, so please note there is no need to file a ticket through the AFA Alaska Support Center. We hear you loud and clear: You want transparency and accountability from management, and you expect AFA leadership to do everything in our power to make that happen on your behalf.

Management has already acknowledged “administrative error,” but this does not go far enough. Consequently, we have communicated your expectations that management transparently communicates additional details and management’s actions in response, including how responsible parties will be held accountable and what is being done to prevent a recurrence. The MEC has also requested Labor Relations to engage with us at the earliest possible opportunity regarding an appropriate and mutually acceptable remedy for the contractual violation.

What is a potential remedy? There is no identifiable loss of pay because of the contract violation, so there is no contractual basis to seek compensation or any other alternative remedy via arbitration. The best outcome we could achieve via a favorable arbitration ruling would be for management to cease and desist (i.e., not violate the contract provision going forward). However, management has already agreed there was a contract violation and signaled to AFA there is no intent for future violations.

Although management is neither obligated to pay anything for the inconvenience, nor would an arbitrator compel management to do so, nothing prevents the parties from mutually agreeing to compensation or some other compensatory-like remedy. AFA has expressed our desire to management to settle this dispute by negotiating such a remedy, so it’s their move next.

Spring 2022 Incentive Premium & Winter Holiday Incentive 2021 Backpay

Master Executive Council (MEC)

  • AFA and management have agreed to a temporary incentive program designed to encourage Flight Attendants to pick up additional flying over the next several months.
  • For the bid months of March, April, and May 2022, qualifying TFP greater than or equal to 100.1 TFP in that bid month will be paid at two times (2.0x) your trip rate.  Certain exceptions and restrictions apply.
  • At AFA request, management also agreed to include an additional payout for Flight Attendants who reported to work during the Winter Holiday Incentive 2021 eligibility period between December 23, 2021, and January 2, 2022; experienced a flight cancellation; and were previously pay protected at 1.0x.

Late Wednesday afternoon, management approached the MEC with a proposal for an incentive premium to encourage Flight Attendants to pick up additional flying over the next several months. After several proposals back and forth over the past few days, the parties reached an agreement late this Friday afternoon. You can read the Spring 2022 Incentive Premium Letter of Agreement that provides more details by clicking here.

Key Details

  • The Spring 2022 Incentive Premium will be in effect for the March, April, and May 2022 bid periods (March 2 through May 31, 2022).  Each month will be considered individually.
  • All qualifying “Spring Incentive 2022 TFP” (based on Worked TFP) greater than or equal to (≥) 100.1 TFP in a bid month will be paid at two times (2.0x) the applicable trip rate.  Some exclusions apply (see below).
  • Spring 2022 Incentive Premium pyramids on Premium Open Time premium(s) but is capped at two times (2.0x) the applicable trip rate.

FAQs

What is Worked TFP?  All paid TFP excluding vacation/Longevity PTO and sick leave. This includes sit pay, minimum pay rules (MPRs), stranded pay, delay pay, training pay, and any other compensation that is paid in TFP.

What else is excluded from Worked TFP to define the qualifying Spring 2022 Incentive TFP?  Pay protection and initial training (RQ3) pay is specifically excluded and will not count toward the 100.1 TFP Spring 2022 Incentive Premium threshold.

Does the Spring 2022 Incentive Premium affect other contractual premiums?  The Spring 2022 Incentive Premium has no effect on all contractual premiums except for Premium Open Time premium(s).  If a Flight Attendant picks up Premium Open Time at one and one-half times (1.5x) the trip rate and is also eligible for the Spring 2022 Incentive Premium of two times (2.0x) the trip rate, the Premium Open Time premiums pyramids up to a maximum of two times (2.0x) the trip rate; Premium Open Time premium rates of two times (2.0x) the trip rate or higher will remain the same.

Will I be able to see my Spring 2022 Incentive Premium pay in Rainmaker?  Management has indicated that it is not likely that incentive premium pay will be reflected in Rainmaker quickly, if at all. Management believes this will be processed directly through Peoplesoft, so the applicable pay will be visible on your paystub.

Winter Holiday Incentive 2021 Backpay

AFA initially asked management about this back in January, but we were not able to reach an agreement on the concept at that time. As part of the negotiations for this incentive program, the parties agreed to provide an additional payout to Flight Attendants who reported to work and experienced a flight cancellation between December 23, 2021, and January 2, 2022.  Affected Flight Attendants who reported for work during the above dates, scanned in or checked in for duty, experienced a flight cancellation, and were pay protected at 1.0x pay will be eligible for an additional payout of $250 each. The $250 backpay is a flat amount per person and is not per sequence or per flight.

Flight Attendants who are eligible must self-identify by completing a Company payout request form no later than April 10, 2022.  Flight Attendants with scheduled vacation days during this time and those on a leave of absence will have the deadline extended accordingly. Please see management’s communication for specific information about how to submit the payout request form. You can read the Winter Holiday Incentive 2021 Backpay Letter of Agreement that provides more details by clicking here.

Questions?

If you have questions about the Spring 2022 Incentive Premium, please contact your LEC President for more information.

Management Eliminates Remaining Pay Protection and Points Reduction Related to COVID-19 Effective Today

Master Executive Council (MEC)

  • Management eliminated all remaining COVID pay protection and attendance points forgiveness, effective today.
  • Going forward, Flight Attendants who experience COVID-related illnesses–even if attributed to workplace exposure—will be forced to use sick leave to replace lost income during Company-directed quarantine and will be subject to attendance points in accordance with Section 32 of our contract.
  • AFA leadership attempted to work with management to enter into an agreement for continued attendance points forgiveness related to COVID-19, but management declined to engage.

As indicated in “Further COVID Policy Changes” which was emailed to all employees on March 10th, Alaska Airlines management eliminated all remaining pay protection and Attendance Policy points reduction related to COVID-19, effective today. Management cited employee rates of infection having dropped “to only a handful of cases this week,” “vaccinated employees…staying out of the hospital even if they get infected,” and overall “lower risk to our employees” as justification for this most recent policy change.

Although those statements are currently true—and we hope that they remain true, AFA Alaska leadership strongly disagrees with management’s decision. Until the World Health Organization (WHO) or the U.S. Center for Disease Control (CDC) officially reclassifies COVID-19 from a pandemic to an endemic disease, then pushing financial and work performance ‘liability’ for this disease to employees is, in the MEC’s opinion, premature.

AFA leadership would be remiss if we overlooked the other commercial factors that management did not acknowledge:

  • Shifting pay replacement for absences related to COVID-19 from the Company to employees’ respective personal sick (or PTO) banks minimizes the Company’s pandemic-related financial burden; and
  • Assessing attendance points (or similar work performance ‘demerits’) to employees for absences related to COVID-19 may lead to increased reluctance by employees to call out sick for other issues, which potentially minimizes pandemic-related operational challenges and inefficiencies—and ultimately improves the bottom line in a roundabout way.

Management advised AFA leadership of the plan to return to situation normal some weeks ago, and we lodged our pandemic vs. endemic objections at that time. Whether it was because of pushback from union leadership or perhaps other factors, management temporarily delayed rollout. However, management was unwilling to wait any longer.

The MEC also requested that the parties bargain on another temporary agreement for point reduction related to COVID-19 absences similar to AFA MOU “§32 Attendance Policy Points Related to COVID-19” that expired on September 30, 2021. Unfortunately, management declined to engage.

Stay tuned for more details about that drama in a forthcoming update!

Human Rights Committee Meeting Recap – 3rd Quarter 2022 

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Human Rights Committee Our AFA Human Rights Committee Chairpersons met on Thursday, August 4 to discuss their ongoing program of work to advance human rights within our workplace and community. The Committee also met with management to receive updates on what progress has been made on concerns that had been previously brought forward and address […]

Uniform Committee Meeting Recap – 3rd Quarter 2022

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Uniform Committee Our AFA Uniform Committee Chairpersons met on Tuesday, August 2 to discuss their ongoing program of work to represent Flight Attendants interests related to uniforms. The Committee also met with management to receive updates and discuss issues and problems that Flight Attendants are reporting related to uniform quality, wearability, and availability. If you […]

Scheduling Committee Meeting Recap – July 2022

Scheduling Committee Our AFA Scheduling Committee Chairpersons met on Tuesday, July 26 to discuss their ongoing program of work to represent Flight Attendants interests related to lineholder scheduling. The Committee also met with management to receive updates and discuss issues and problems that Flight Attendants are experiencing with scheduling, pairings, and bidding. Your Local Scheduling […]

Grievance Committee Update – 1st and 2nd Quarters 2022

Grievance Committee Our Grievance Committee works to protect all Flight Attendants from arbitrary and unjust disciplinary action and to uphold our collective bargaining agreement.  This update provides a short summary of the committee’s work over the past two quarters. Management has issued discipline lately for a variety of reasons.  Read on for more information about the reasons […]

Air Safety, Health, & Security Committee Meeting Recap – 3rd Quarter 2022

Air Safety, Health, & Security Committee (ASHSC) Our AFA Air Safety, Health, & Security Committee (ASHSC) Chairpersons met on Thursday, July 14 to discuss their ongoing program of work to represent Flight Attendants interests related to safety, health, and security in our workplace. The Committee also met with management to receive updates and discuss issues […]

December 2021 MEC Meeting Recap

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December 2021 MEC Meeting Recap Master Executive Council (MEC) President Jeffrey Peterson Just wrapped up chairing our monthly MEC meeting yesterday and today. As usual, your AFA committee chairs and reps provided written reports to the MEC about the latest developments in their areas, and we received live briefings regarding dispute resolution & grievances, scheduling, […]

Inflight Leadership Change and the Path Forward

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Master Executive Council (MEC) President Jeffrey Peterson Now that is has been officially announced that Travis will be stepping away as leader of the Inflight division, I thought Alaska Airlines Flight Attendants might want to hear from their MEC president. I may not always be at liberty to communicate the details of every conversation advocating […]

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