Joint Contract Negotiations Session 20 – October 2026

This message is for both pre-merger Alaska and Hawaiian Flight Attendants

• Our JNC met with management this week on October 26 to October 28 in Seattle; our next negotiation session is scheduled for November 16 to November 18
• Our JNC and management completed Interest-based Bargaining (IBB) Training, which was held on October 14 to October 15
• Tentative Agreements were reached on Section 6 (Seniority), LOA 14: Legacy Retiree Pass Privileges, and LOA 18: Retiree Health Insurance

Negotiations Update

Our AFA Alaska + Hawaiian Joint Negotiating Committee (JNC) met this week for four days of collective bargaining with management. The JNC met with management from October 26 to October 28 in Seattle, WA. At the negotiating table for this session were:

Representing AFA and our Flight Attendants	Representing Management
Tim Green, Joint Negotiating Committee Chairperson	Allen Thieman, Vice President of Inflight, Alaska
Martin Gusman, Joint Negotiating Committee Member	Ryan St. John, Vice President, Finance, Planning and Investor Relations, Alaska
Jeffrey Fuke, Joint Negotiating Committee Member	Joe Wonderly, Vice President, Labor Relations, Alaska
Virginia Fritz, Joint Negotiating Committee Member	Carmen Williams, Managing Director, Labor Relations, Alaska
Heather Reier, Joint Negotiating Committee Member	Kalani Sloat, Senior Director, Labor Relations, Hawaiian
Paula Mastrangelo, AFA Senior Staff Negotiator	Mike Link, Labor Relations Program Manager, Alaska
	Karen Themelis, Senior Labor Relations Business Partner, Alaska

This week the JNC addressed Section 6 (Seniority), Section 19 (Grievance Procedures), Section 29 (Performance Based Pay and Retirement) and associated LOAs, and Section 30 (Training).  We were able to reach a Tentative Agreement on Section 6 (Seniority), LOA 14: Legacy Retiree Pass Privileges and LOA 18: Retiree Health Insurance.

Interest-based Bargaining (IBB)Training

The JNC completed IBB Training with management, including decision makers from Crew Planning, Crew Scheduling, Crew Staffing and Inflight Products & Experience. The training took place at the Alaska Global Training Center on October 14 and October 15. A mediator from the National Mediation Board (NMB) led this training. The sessions gave both the committee and management practical examples of using IBB in negotiations, including an opportunity to apply it during the second day of the training.

Working together in IBB provided an opportunity for us to have a more productive bargaining session this week. The JNC plans to use both IBB and traditional bargaining to work through some of the complex issues we face as we combine our two operations.

Section by Section Progress

The Alaska CBA is being used as the basis of the joint contract for language purposes. Each section and provision from both contracts will be reviewed individually to incorporate and amend the strongest elements from each agreement.

Tentative Agreements reached in this session:

• Seniority (AS CBA Section 6 and HA CBA Section 9)
• LOA 14: Legacy Retiree Pass Privileges
• LOA 18: Retiree Health Insurance

Sections discussed in this session:

• Grievance Procedures (AS CBA Section 19 and HA CBA Section 23)
• Performance Based Pay (PBP) and Retirement (AS CBA Section 29, LOA 14 and LOA 18 and HA CBA Section 33 and Section 34-31)
• Training (AS CBA Section 30 and HA CBA Section 26)

Sections in ongoing discussion:

• Vacations (AS CBA Section 14 and HA CBA Section 18)
• Sick Leave (AS CBA Section 16 and HA CBA Section 19)
• Leaves of Absence (AS CBA Section 15 and HA CBA Section 17)
• Expenses (AS CBA Section 22 and HA CBA Section 4)
• Insurance Benefits (AS CBA Section 23 and HA CBA Section 32)
• General and Miscellaneous (AS CBA Section 24 and HA CBA Section 27)
• Domiciles (AS CBA Section 28 and HA CBA Section 5, 14, and 27)
• Commuter Policy (AS CBA Section 36 and HA CBA Section 34-28)

Sections listed below are on hold until discussions regarding future sections, which affect specific provisions, take place.

• Charters (AS CBA Section 33 and HA CBA Section 12)

JCBA Negotiations

As a reminder, here’s how JCBA bargaining differs from regular negotiations:

• Not Section 6 Negotiations: Because our contracts are not amendable, we fall outside the regular Section 6 process.
• Creating One Contract from Two: Instead of improving a single contract, JCBA talks are about building an entirely new agreement from two existing contracts.
• Different Survey Process: The Joint Negotiating Committee (JNC) will send targeted “subject matter” surveys on specific contract sections.

For more information about the process please see Understanding JCBA Negotiations

What’s Upcoming

Reserve Survey

Thank you for participating in the Reserve Survey. We received more than a thousand responses. The JNC will continue reviewing and sorting the data to look for trends in feedback received from both Reserves and Lineholders. The JNC will be meeting from November 6 to November 9 to thoroughly review all survey feedback and attend the Local Council 43 Meeting in Honolulu.

Next Session

Our next negotiating session with management is scheduled for November 16 to November 18.