Negotiations News Archives

Management has recently approached AFA regarding their desire to negotiate a co-terminal agreement for the SFO domicile.  Alaska Airlines currently operates a co-terminal agreement at LAX, which allows pairings to be built to begin and end at co-terminal airports through the Los Angeles metropolitan area.  If adopted, an SFO co-terminal agreement would allow a similar arrangement for pairings to begin and end at co-terminal airports throughout the San Francisco Bay Area.

Why Negotiations?  Can’t Management Just Open Co-Terminals?

Though management retains the right to open and close domiciles at their discretion within the guidelines spelled out in the collective bargaining agreement, co-terminals are not domiciles in themselves but rather additional airports that are part of a single domicile.  There is no contractual mechanism that allows management to add additional airports to a domicile, therefore an agreement must be negotiated. 

Special Negotiating Committee To Be Formed

The voting members of your Master Executive Council (MEC), consisting of the six directly-elected LEC Presidents, have approved the creation of a special negotiating committee to negotiate a co-terminal agreement with management.  The committee will consist of three Negotiating Committee Members who will be selected by the MEC.  The MEC President serves as Chairperson of the committee per the AFA Constitution & Bylaws.

Although a co-terminal agreement would certainly effect Flight Attendants based at SFO, it would also have a further reaching impact throughout the system.  With more trips being able to begin and end at co-terminal airports, there would likely be a reduction in layovers in these locations. The systemwide distribution of flying would also be impacted as co-terminal airports would begin accommodating pairings built out of those locations.  For this reason, the Special Negotiating Committee positions are open to Flight Attendants from all domiciles.

Special Negotiating Committee Positions

Scope of the Special Negotiating Committee

The Special Negotiating Committee will negotiate an agreement for co-terminal airports to be added to the SFO domicile.

Duties and Responsibilities of the Special Negotiating Committee

From Section VI.A.2 of the AFA-CWA Policy Manual

The duties and responsibilities of the Negotiating Committee shall include the following:

a.         The Committee, with the advice of the Staff Negotiator shall have the authority to conclude an agreement, subject to the provisions of Article XII. of the Constitution and Bylaws.

b.         All members of the Committee, including alternates whenever possible, shall complete a negotiations training seminar prior to writing an “opener.”

c.         Committee members shall be familiar with Union policy and keep abreast of new developments in the industry.

d.         Committee members shall utilize the facilities and resources of the Union and the experience and knowledge of Union Officers, International Office staff and study committees of the Union. (e.g., Legal, Retirement and Insurance, Wage and Working Conditions, etc.).

e.         Committee members shall maintain a current record of the:

(1)        Financial condition of the company.

(2)        Management lines of authority and methods of communication.

(3)        Operations statistics and experiences of the airline which may be used in bargaining, grievances, litigation, etc.

f.          Committee members shall be familiar with the wishes of the flight attendant group with respect to wages, working conditions, and work rules, through, for example, system-wide distribution of contract surveys, periodic road shows, etc.

g.         The Committee, with the advice of the Staff Negotiator, shall prepare the contract opener.

h.         The Committee shall provide regular updates to the membership on the status of negotiations through, for example, newsletters, hotlines, telephone trees, etc.

i.          The Committee shall maintain a complete record of the negotiations, including proposals, notes and communications, and such record is the property of AFA-CWA. A copy of this record will be forwarded to the International Office by the Negotiating Committee.

Expectations/Qualifications

• Appointed by the AFA Alaska MEC and terms are served to completion at the approval of the MEC.  Takes direction from the chairperson of the Special Negotiating Committee (i.e. in this case the MEC President) with input from the AFA International Collective Bargaining Department (i.e. staff negotiator) and Legal Department (i.e. staff attorney).  After successful ratification of the SFO Co-Terminal Agreement will continue to serve as a contract interpretation resource for the agreement.
• Maintain a complete record of negotiations including proposals, notes and communications. Such record is the property of AFA-CWA.
• Public interactions (including social media) must reflect favorably on AFA Alaska.  If requested by AFA Alaska, Special Negotiating Committee Members must be willing to reasonably limit social media interactions for the duration of preparation, negotiations and implementation.
• Ability to tolerate controversy amongst one’s peers.
• Willing to travel for training, preparation, negotiations, roadshows and other meetings as needed.
• Must be willing to adjust her/his schedule as needed, sometimes with very little notice.

Flight Pay Loss/Expenses

• 6 TFP for each 8 hours of work 
• Travel time is unpaid; exceptions will be treated on a case-by-case basis.
• Meal & incidentals and other expenses to be reimbursed according to AFA Alaska Policy Manual and AFA-CWA C&B.

How to Express Interest In the Positions

• Interested candidates should submit an expression of interest letter and resume to MEC Secretary-Treasurer Linda Christou at linda.christou@afaalaska.org.
• The expression of interest letter should include responses to the following questions:
  • What interests you about this position?
  • Why do you believe you are a good candidate for the position?
  • What is your understanding of the LAX co-terminal agreement that is currently in place?
• The deadline for applications is Friday, February 1, 2019 at 5 PM Pacific time.
• Linda will contact applicants to coordinate an interview with the MEC and arrange travel (if necessary).  Interviews will be held at the AFA MEC Office in Seattle, WA on Wednesday, February 13, 2019.

Questions?

Any questions regarding Special Negotiating Committee positions should be directed to MEC President Jeffrey Peterson at jeffrey.peterson@afaalaska.org.

In Solidarity,

Your MEC – Jeffrey Peterson, Brian Palmer, Linda Christou, Lisa Pinkston, Terry Taylor, Mario de’Medici, Melissa Osborne, Tim Green and Brice McGee