AFA Alaska + Hawaiian

Representing the Flight Attendants of Alaska + Hawaiian

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Due to the recent spike in cabin air fume events, your AFA Air Safety, Health, and Security Committee (ASHSC) has been working diligently to assist with all fume events by continuing with our normal procedure of contacting the affected crews, offering support, educating, and providing tools and resources for responding to these events.

Resources Available

With regard to education, the Committee is currently working with the Air Safety, Health, and Security (ASHS) department at AFA International to create additional online training and educational materials related to fume events.  Some of the resources available are listed below.

Air Quality Fume Event FAQs

The Committee has compiled a comprehensive question and answer document to help provide information about many of the questions and concerns that have been received about cabin air fume events.

You can access the Q&A document by clicking here.

Air Quality Exposure Quick Reference Card

The Air Quality Exposure Quick Reference Card is a wallet sized card that explains what to do in a contaminated cabin air exposure event.  The card can be kept in a badge holder behind your company ID or in your wallet.

The card was recently updated by the Committee and now includes information about the Airbus fleet.  If you currently have an older version of the card, please destroy your old card and replace it with a newly updated one.  The updated cards are currently being distributed to each domicile.

Look for more information from your Local Council about where to pick one up at your base.  You can access and print the card on the AFA Alaska website by clicking here.

AFA Alaska Website

Additional air quality information, including a flow chart that describes what to do in a cabin air fume event, can be found at afaalaska.org under Committees > Air Safety, Health, & Security (ASHSC) > Air Quality.

Questions?

If you have additional questions about cabin air quality or the AFA resources available, please email airquality@afaalaska.org or contact a member of your Local Air Safety, Health, & Security Committee (ASHSC).  You can find contact information on the ASHSC page of the AFA Alaska website.

This is a reminder that the Seattle Council #19 Meeting will be held from 1-4 pm on November 12 in the Earhart Room, on the lower level of the SeaTac Office Tower (same building as 13 Coins Restaurant), at 18000 International Boulevard.  Take the elevator to the ‘LP’ level.
Free parking for three hours is available in front of the building.  If you can’t find parking, there is parking in the rear, just take a ticket and we can validate it after the meeting.
Council #19 Officers and Committee Chairs will be attending to answer questions and provide updates on recent events and activities.

We look forward to seeing you there.

 

In Solidarity,

Terry, Jake, Adam, Melinda and Megan

Learn about Bidding, Trading/Dropping/Swapping, and our new JCBA

The Council 35 and Crew Systems Integration (CSI) team will be present in the SFO Village to answer questions about NavBlue Preferential Bidding (PBS), the contract (JCBA) and the open-time/trading (JCTE) systems. Don’t miss your opportunity to learn these new programs prior to full integration planned for January 2019.

Base sits are scheduled for the following dates in 2018:

  • Nov 5-7
  • Nov 15-17
  • Dec 5-9
  • Dec 14-15

For specific times, please visit the Council 35 Facebook page. 

The Council 35 CSI Support Team

The Council 35 CSI team includes your Council 35 officers and the following members:

  • Virginia Fritz
  • Jaqui Bellenie
  • Krystle Kehrli
  • Julie Pearson
  • Rachel Sebastian
  • Jose Alarcon

Support will also be provided by the Master Executive Council (MEC) Scheduling and PBS Committee members:

  • Jake Jones 
  • Bianca Dew
  • Steve Poynter
  • Sheri Rochel
  • Conner Gallagher

Please visit Alaskasworld for a self-study of the new systems.  Having a basic understanding of the programs will make it easier for the team to provide you with guidance on your specific questions during base sits.

For a complete list of tutorials and guides on PBS bidding, JCBA provisions and JCTE, please visit:

Alaskasworld>Inflight Webpage>Training.  Select tab “Crew System Integration (CSI)” for a list of available resources.

Mock Bids

Don’t forget to participate in the mock bids for December and January. To practice bidding for your schedule with the NavBlue system prior to bidding live, please select the “NavBlue PBS Training Site” which is found within the  “Crew System Integration (CSI)” tab referenced above.  Your Peoplesoft number will be your username and password the first time you enter the site.

Dates of mock bidding practice:

  • Nov 5-10 (for December practice bid)
  • Dec 5-10 (for January practice bid)

Practice or mock bid awards will be published by the 13th of each month.

Live bidding dates:

  • January 5-10, 2019 (for live February bid)

Your February bid will be published by January 13 and will be your actual flying schedule for February 2019.

If you have any questions, please reach out to your Council 35 officers at sfo@afaalaska.org or the SFO Scheduling committee at sfo.scheduling@afaalaska.org.

In solidarity,

Melissa, Aladrian and James

The Master Executive Council (MEC) has been very hard at work ensuring disciplinary due process and contractual compliance on your behalf.  Section 20.N.2 of the Flight Attendant Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) allows for 10 arbitration dates per year to argue discipline/termination cases and contractual issues.  The ratified Joint CBA increases this amount and provides for 13 dates that will be incorporated into our 2019 schedule.  AFA typically prioritizes termination cases in order to return a Flight Attendant back to work as soon as possible, however we seek a balance between discipline and contractual cases.  AFA and management mutually decide which cases to arbitrate next based on many factors. The following is a list of open contractual grievances.

Subject of Most Recent Discipline

  • Drug/Alcohol Violations
  • Social Media Violations
  • Cell Phone Usage While on Duty
  • Theft
  • Sick Leave Abuse
  • Harassment

Recent and Upcoming Arbitration/Mediation

Arbitration October 25, 2018

Grievance No.:  36-99-2-29-15-Commuter Boarding Priority. This grievance alleges the Company’s violation of Section 28.G.6. and all related sections of the Collective Bargaining Agreement when it allowed Company employees (and their dependents) on pleasure travel to be given higher boarding priority than commuting Flight Attendants.

Arbitration November 13, 2018

Disciplinary Grievance

Recently Settled Grievances/Mediations

Three disciplinary grievances were settled in quarter 3.

Grievances Filed and Awaiting a Response from Management

Grievance No.:  36-99-2-321-18-Violation of §§21, 24, 30 & 34 Hotel at Domicile for Transition Training.  This grievance alleges the Company’s violation of Collective Bargaining Agreement §21 [Compensation], §24 [General and Miscellaneous], §30 [Training] and §34 [Hotels], past practice and all related sections of the Collective Bargaining Agreement when some Flight Attendants requested and were provided hotel rooms at base for Transition Training while others who requested a room were not provided one.      

Grievances Recently Granted by Management

Grievance No.:  36-99-2-2-16- Violation of ASAP and Discipline LOA.  This grievance alleges the Company’s violation of Letter of Agreement:  ASAP and Discipline July 2006 and all related sections of the Collective Bargaining Agreement when it failed to allow the ASAP process to complete prior to disciplining and terminating a Flight Attendant.  The Letter of Agreement specifically states, “Flight Attendants participating in the ASAP program, whether reporting or non-reporting as defined in the ASAP Memorandum of Understanding, will not be subject to discipline.  Neither the written ASAP report nor the content of the written ASAP report will be used to initiate or support any company disciplinary action.”

Grievance 36-99-2-129-18 Violation of ASAP and Discipline LOA.  This grievance alleges the Company’s violation of Letter of Agreement: Aviation Safety Action Program (ASAP) Additional Provisions (October 2017) and all related sections of the Collective Bargaining Agreement when on April 27, 2018, it failed to follow the ASAP provisions and suspended a Flight Attendant.  The Letter of Agreement specifically states, “Flight Attendants participating in the ASAP program, whether reporting or non-reporting as defined in the ASAP Memorandum of Understanding, will not be subject to disciplinary actions.  Neither the written ASAP report nor the content of the written ASAP report will be used to initiate or support any company disciplinary action.”

Grievance No.  36-99-2-135-18 Violation of ASAP and Discipline LOA.  This grievance alleges the Company’s violation of Letter of Agreement:  Aviation Safety Action Program (ASAP) Additional Provisions (October 2017) and all related sections of the Collective Bargaining Agreement when on March 21, 2018, it failed to follow the ASAP provisions and issued an oral warning to a Flight Attendant.  The Letter of Agreement specifically states, “Flight Attendants participating in the ASAP program, whether reporting or non-reporting as defined in the ASAP Memorandum of Understanding, will not be subject to disciplinary actions.  Neither the written ASAP report nor the content of the written ASAP report will be used to initiate or support any company disciplinary action.”

Grievance No.  36-99-2-136-18 Violation of ASAP and Discipline LOA.  This grievance alleges the Company’s violation of Letter of Agreement:  Aviation Safety Action Program (ASAP) Additional Provisions (October 2017) and all related sections of the Collective Bargaining Agreement when on February 27, 2018, it failed to follow the ASAP provisions and issued an oral warning to a Flight Attendant.  The Letter of Agreement specifically states, “Flight Attendants participating in the ASAP program, whether reporting or non-reporting as defined in the ASAP Memorandum of Understanding, will not be subject to disciplinary actions.  Neither the written ASAP report nor the content of the written ASAP report will be used to initiate or support any company disciplinary action.”

Grievance No.  36-99-2-137-18 Violation of ASAP and Discipline LOA.  This grievance alleges the Company’s violation of Letter of Agreement:  Aviation Safety Action Program (ASAP) Additional Provisions (October 2017) and all related sections of the Collective Bargaining Agreement when on February 27, 2018, it failed to follow the ASAP provisions and issued an oral warning to a Flight Attendant and removed pay from her.  The Letter of Agreement specifically states, “Flight Attendants participating in the ASAP program, whether reporting or non-reporting as defined in the ASAP Memorandum of Understanding, will not be subject to disciplinary actions.  Neither the written ASAP report nor the content of the written ASAP report will be used to initiate or support any company disciplinary action.”  Additionally, while the Company did render her discipline moot since it added an IMD loaner program after the fact, it failed to pay protect her for their failure to not have a loaner program initially.

Grievances Previously Filed, Denied by Management and Currently Awaiting Arbitration Dates

Grievance No.:  36-99-2-22-14-Violation of Required Maternity Leave.  This grievance alleges the Company’s violation of Section 15.D. and all related sections of the Collective Bargaining Agreement when it failed to require Flight Attendants to begin Maternity Leave after the 28thweek of pregnancy.

Grievance No.:  36-99-2-15-15- Limiting Access to the SAN Domicile.  This grievance alleges the Company’s violation of Section 28.I [Company Provided Computers and Printers at Domiciles], when it limited access to the SAN Domicile including contractually required resources to only those Flight Attendants based in SAN.

Grievance No.:  36-99-2-41-15- Section 34.C.3. Alternative Hotel Selection/Site Visit.  This grievance alleges the Company’s violation of Section 34.C.3. and all related sections of the Collective Bargaining Agreement when it failed to include the hotel committee in the selection of alternate hotels; and when it failed to provide site visits on alternate hotels.

Grievance No.:  36-99-2-5-16- Non-Negotiated Compensation.  This grievance alleges the Company’s violation of Collective Bargaining Agreement Section 21 [Compensation] and Section 32 [Attendance Policy], past practice and all related sections of the Collective Bargaining Agreement and the Railway Labor Act when it awarded, without prior consistent notice, policy and application, $5 gift cards to all Anchorage based Flight Attendants for meeting the daily attendance goal.

Grievance No.:  36-99-2-32-16-Automation of Stranded and Delay Pay.  This grievance alleges the Company’s violation of Collective Bargaining Agreement Section 21 [Compensation], past practice and all related sections of the Collective Bargaining Agreement when it continues to automate its payroll system yet failed to include automated stranded pay for the entire crew.

Grievance No.:  36-99-2-1-17- Violation of §32.C.5. Assessing Short Sick Call Points to Flight Attendant on FMLA.  This grievance alleges the Company’s violation of Collective Bargaining Agreement §32.C.5 [Attendance Policy:  Short Sick Call], past practice, all related sections of the Collective Bargaining Agreement and Federal Law when it assessed short sick call points (2 ½) to Flight Attendants on qualified Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA) status when they called in sick within two hours of scheduled check-in.

Grievance No.:  36-99-2-3-17-Violation §30.A.3.c. Failure to Pay for Lodging for Recurrent Training. This grievance alleges the Company’s violation of Collective Bargaining Agreement Section 30.A.3.c. [Reserve/Reserve Exchange of Days, Pick-Ups and Trades], past practice and all related sections of the Collective Bargaining Agreement when it failed to pay for a Flight Attendant’s lodging when she came to Seattle to attend required Recurrent Training.

Grievance No.:  36-99-2-52-17-Violation of §§11.H.3.b & 11.H.4 JCTE Denying Unlimited Trading of Reserve Days Due to Classification as a Reserve Block Split.  This grievance alleges the Company’s violation of Collective Bargaining Agreement §§11.H.3.b & 11.H.4 [Reserve:  Reserve Exchange of Days, Pick-Ups and Trades/Reserve Day/Blocks], past practice and all related sections of the Collective Bargaining Agreement when its Jeppesen Crew Access (JCA) trading system denied unlimited trading of reserve days pursuant to §11.H.4 due to JCA incorrectly classifying such trade as a reserve block split pursuant to §11.H.3.b.

Grievance No.:  36-99-2-54-17-Violation of §23.A.1 Flight Attendants Incurring a 3% Fee for Online Payments to COBRA Management Services.  This grievance alleges the Company’s violation of Collective Bargaining Agreement §23.A.1 [Insurance Benefits:  Flight Attendant Insurance Plans], past practice and all related sections of the Collective Bargaining Agreement when for the convenience of the Company it used a third-party vendor to administer collection of healthcare premiums for Flight Attendants on leaves of absence; and the Company allowed their third-party vendor to charge the Flight Attendants a 3% fee for online payments to COBRA Management Services (CMS).

Grievance No.:  36-99-2-55-17-Violation of §21.V Winds Aloft Adjustment of Sit Pay in JCTE.  This grievance alleges the Company’s violation of Collective Bargaining Agreement §21.V [Compensation:  “Scheduled” or “Actual” For Minimum Pay Rules (MPRs) and/or Sit Pay], past practice and all related sections of the Collective Bargaining Agreement when its Jeppesen Crew Access (JCA) trading system displayed each posted trip as a static ‘snapshot’ taken at the time of posting rather than a ‘live’ view, thus denying the Flight Attendant the ability to determine whether a trip is eligible for 1.0 TFP of Sit Pay due to an automated scheduling adjustment (e.g. by the Winds Aloft program).

Grievance No.:  36-99-2-56-17-Violation of §15.C.4 Medical Leave of Absence.  This grievance alleges the Company’s violation of Collective Bargaining Agreement §15.C.4 [Leaves of Absence:  Medical Leave of Absence], past practice and all related sections of the Collective Bargaining Agreement when in December 2016 it denied [a Flight Attendant’s] medical leave of absence (MLOA) because she did not also qualify for FMLA and because the MLOA was less than 10 days in duration.

Grievance No.:  36-99-63-17 Violation of §11.C.3.c & §12.E.1.c-d Withholding Sequences From Open Time. This grievance alleges the Company’s violation of Collective Bargaining Agreement §11.C.3.c [Reserve: Classifications of Reserves/number of Extended Days (ER) and Conversion to ER/ER Conversion Contactability] & §12.E.1.c-d [Exchange of Sequences:  Open Time], past practice and all related sections of the Collective Bargaining Agreement when it removed pairings from Open Time and placed them on Reserve Flight Attendants’ lines for more than 15 minutes, outside of the time period 2pm-6pm, and hid the pairings from view on the Reserves’ schedules until the Reserves became available for contact or Extended Reserve (ER) conversion.

Grievance No.:  36-99-2-64-17 Violation of §27.P.1.f-h Company Business Flight Pay Loss.  This grievance alleges the Company’s violation of Collective Bargaining Agreement §27.P.1.f-h [General-Association:  Company Business Flight Pay Loss (CB)/Company Meetings], past practice and all related sections of the Collective Bargaining Agreement when it requested Flight Attendants attend an Inflight Announcement Focus Group on or about August 7, 2017, without compensating for company meeting pay nor the five percent (5%) override and “A” pay, and without regard to contractual duty day applications; alternatively it provided non-negotiated compensation.

Grievance No.:  36-99-2-137-17-Violation of §19.A.1.a Failure to Conduct a Full Investigation with Union Representation and Contractual Pay Provisions.  This grievance alleges the Company’s violation of Collective Bargaining Agreement §19.A.1.a [Grievance Procedures:  Dismissal or Disciplinary Procedures], Grievance Settlement 36-99-2-10-16 [Mandatory Attendance Counseling Violation Section 32], principles of just cause and due process, past practice and all related section of the Collective Bargaining Agreement when on or about September 1, 2017, it issued approximately 80 Confirmation of Oral Warnings and/or Written Warnings via certified mail without performance supervisors first conducting an investigation, issuing an actual oral warning and/or providing Union Representation or contractual pay provisions.  See Grievances Recently Granted by Management for information on related disciplinary grievances.

Grievance No.:  36-99-2-159-17-Violation of §12.A & §12.E Withholding Trips from Open Time and Suspended all Trading due JCTE Issues.  This grievance alleges the Company’s violation of Collective Bargaining Agreement §12.A & E [Exchange of Sequences:  Unlimited Trading/Open Time], past practice and all related sections of the Collective Bargaining Agreement when on or about September 30, 2017, to October 1, 2017, for approximately 8 hours, it either withheld all trips in open time or suspended all trading due to an issue with its Jeppesen Crew Tracking system.

Grievance No.:  36-99-2-205-17 Violation of §19.A.1.a Failure to Conduct a Full Investigation with Union Representation and Contractual Pay Provisions.  This grievance alleges the Company’s violation of Collective Bargaining Agreement §19.A.1.a [Grievance Procedures:  Dismissal or Disciplinary Procedures], principles of just cause and due process, past practice and all related sections of the Collective Bargaining Agreement when on or about November 7, 2017, and November 8, 2017, it issued approximately 41 Confirmations of Oral Warning via certified mail without performance supervisors first conducting a full investigation, issuing an actual oral warning and/or providing Union Representation or contractual pay provisions.

Grievance No.:  36-99-2-104-18 Violationof §19.A.1. Imprecise Charges and Failure to Conduct a Full Investigation with Union Representation and Contractual Pay Provisions.  This grievance alleges the Company’s violation of Collective Bargaining Agreement §19.A.1. [Grievance Procedures: Dismissal or Disciplinary Procedures], principles of just cause and due process, past practice and all related sections of the Collective Bargaining Agreement when on or about January 3-5, 2018, it issued approximately 103 confirmations of oral warning (I-6s) with inaccurate information and imprecise charges via certified mail without performance supervisors first conducting a full investigation, issuing an actual oral warning and/or providing Union Representation or contractual pay provisions.

Grievance No.:  36-99-2-109-18-Violation of §32 Attendance Policy.  This grievance alleges the Company’s violation of Section 32.C.1.a. and Addendum to Section §32 question #6 [Attendance Policy], principles of just cause and due process, past practice and all related sections of the Collective Bargain Agreement when on December 21, 2017, it issued 3 points for a no show without performance supervisors first conducting a full investigation for contractual performance provisions resulting in a Flight Attendant receiving a no show for an unapproved trade placed on her schedule without mutual consent. In the spirit of the Attendance Policy it is important to note the Attendance Policy is not about finding fault with anyone. It is a tracking system to show whether or not you were at work when you were scheduled to be there.  In this case the Flight Attendant was not aware of the scheduling obligation placed on her line by another Flight Attendant.

Grievance No.:  36-99-2-116-18-Violation of §10.J.4 Bidding Timelines.  This grievance alleges the Company’s violation of Section 10.J.4 [Scheduling:  Bid Packets and Bidding Timelines], past practice, and all related sections of the Collective Bargaining Agreement when on or about March 13, 2018, management re-opened its Preferential Bidding System (PBS), NavBlue, for a full bid re-award for April 2018 because it was not programmed to match the bid “duty on” preference on the new web application user interface.  However, due to system limitations the re-award required the PBS to reopen which allowed access for Flight Attendants to submit new bids after the contractual bid submission deadline.

Grievance No.:  36-99-2-120-18-Violation of §32.C.1 Attendance No Shows.  This grievance alleges the Company’s violation of Collective Bargaining Agreement §32.C.1 [Attendance Policy:  Attendance Policy Definitions/No Show], past practice, and all related sections of the Collective Bargaining Agreement when due to a no show it assigned three (3) attendance points to a Flight Attendant for a trip in February 2018.

Grievance No.:  36-18-2-121-18-Violation of §32 Attendance Policy.  This grievance alleges the Company’s violation of Collective Bargaining Agreement §32.C.1.a and Addendum to Section §32 question #6 [Attendance Policy], principles of just cause and due process, past practice and all related sections of the Collective Bargaining Agreement when on March 5, 2018, it issued to a Flight Attendant a no show with three (3) attendance points for a trip picked up on his schedule without his knowledge.  It is important to note the Attendance Policy is not about finding fault with anyone; it is a tracking system to show whether or not you were at work when you were scheduled to be there.

Grievance No.:  36-35-2-122-18-Violation of AFA VX LOA Virgin America Flight Attendant Commuter Policy.  This grievance alleges the Company’s violation of Virgin America Work Rules (WR), AFA VX Letter of Agreement: Virgin America Flight Attendant Commuter Policy (9.14.17), and any applicable sections of the Collective Bargaining Agreement, when on or about March 18, 2018, it denied non-probationary Flight Attendants from class hire date July 10, 2017, a Stuff Happens Pass (SHP), while it allowed other Flight Attendants from the same class the ability to use the pass.  This is in contradiction to the WR which state, “a SHP is given at 90 days after initial employment and available for use once the Flight Attendant passes probation.”

Grievance No. 36-99-2-132-18 Violation of §19.A.1 Disciplinary Timeline.  This grievance alleges the Company’s violation of Collective Bargaining Agreement §19.A.1 [Grievance Procedures: Dismissal or Disciplinary Procedures], principles of just cause and due process, past practice and all related sections of the Collective Bargaining Agreement when in May 2018 it disciplined Flight Attendants outside of twelve (12) days from the date the Company reasonably had knowledge of the incident giving rise to the disciplinary action in direct contrast to contractual language and long standing past practice.

Grievance No. 36-99-2-133-18 Violation of §19.A.1 Failure to Conduct a Full Investigation with Union Representation, Contractual Pay Provisions and Violation of Timeline.  This grievance alleges the Company’s violation of Collective Bargaining Agreement §19.A.1. [Grievance Procedures:  Dismissal or Disciplinary Procedures], principles of just cause and due process, past practice and all related sections of the Collective Bargaining Agreement when on or about May 30, 2018, it untimely issued approximately 154 confirmations of oral warning and/or written warnings (I-6s) via certified mail without providing adequate notice of the training required, without performance supervisors first conducting a full investigation, without issuing an actual oral warning and/or without providing Union Representation or contractual pay provisions; such discipline was issued for failing to complete Computer Based Training (CBT).

Grievance No.:  36-99-2-300-18-Violation of §30.C.4 Transition Training CBT Run Times.  This grievance alleges the Company’s violation of Collective Bargaining Agreement §30.C.4 [Training:  Training Pay/Computer Based Training (CBT)], principles of just cause and due process, past practice and all related sections of the Collective Bargaining Agreement when it failed to determine run-times of the Transition Training CBT with AFA input.

Grievance No.:  36-99-2-302-18-Violation of §34.A.2.a Hotel Requirements.  This grievance alleges the Company’s violation of Collective Bargaining Agreement §34.A2.a [Hotels:  Lodging/Hotel Selection Process/Hotel Requirements], principles of just cause and due process, past practice and all related sections of the Collective Bargaining Agreement when on or about June 28, 2018,  its Detroit layover hotel, Doubletree by Hilton Detroit, assigned a Flight Attendant a ground floor hotel room, despite contractual language between the Association and the Company, and the Company and the hotel, specifying the hotel will avoid assigning ground floor hotel rooms to crew members.

Grievance No.:  36-99-2-303-18-Violation of Airbus Transition Training Letter of Agreement CBT Pay.  This grievance alleges the Company’s violation of Collective Bargaining Agreement §30.C.4 [Training:  Training Pay/Computer Based Training (CBT)], Airbus Transition Training Letter of Agreement (2.8.18), principles of just cause and due process, past practice and all related sections of the Collective Bargaining Agreement when its Transition Training CBT was allocated for four (4) hours, however based on initial feedback, the Association believes it likely takes longer than four (4) hours to complete, and therefore Flight Attendants will need to be paid accordingly.

In Solidarity,

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

The Alaska Airlines Annual Benefits Enrollment opened this week.  This year the enrollment period is from October 29th – November 14th. This is your once-a-year opportunity to choose the right coverage for you and your family. Learn more and enroll at http://myalaskabenefits.com. If you want to talk with someone about your options, you can call the Benefits Center at 1-844-231-3476.

The Council 35 Benefits Committee Chair Robert Fung is planning a base sit in the SFO Village to provide additional assistance on the following date:

  • November 4th: 0930 – 1330

More base sits may be scheduled, so please check the Council 35 Facebook Pagefor more potential dates and times.

In Solidarity,

Melissa, Aladrian and James

Our Annual Benefits Enrollment Starts today! This year the enrollment period is from October 29th – November 14th. This is your once-a-year opportunity to choose the right coverage for you and your family. Learn more and enroll at http://myalaskabenefits.com. If you want to talk with someone about your options, you can call your Benefits Center at 1-844-231-3476.

Our AFA Benefits Committee is planning base sits in the Inflight office to provide additional assistance. The dates and times are:

  • November 9th: 8am – 4pm
  • November 11th: 6am – 2pm
  • November 13th: 1pm – 8pm
  • November 14th: 7am – 3pm

You can always reach out to one of your Seattle AFA Benefits Committee Members if you have additional questions. http://afaalaska.org/sea/committees.

In Solidarity,

Your Council #19 Benefits Committee and Council #19 Officers: Terry, Jake, Adam, Melinda and Megan.

There has been a lot of interest recently in marijuana oils and products containing Cannabidiol (CBD).  CBD is a different chemical compound than tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the primary psychoactive component of the marijuana plant. You may have read about such products or seen them in the news.

It is important to know that CBD oils and other products containing CBD are considered to be Schedule I controlled substances and are therefore illegal under federal law.  Under federal guidelines, these substances do not have an acceptable medical application.  Regardless of labeling, products containing CBD, may contain traces of THC that would trigger a positive drug test and place your employment at risk.

You can read more about use of CBD oils and the federal government position on their use in a memorandum from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration that you can access by clicking here.

Questions?

If you have any questions, please contact the AFA Alaska EAP Committee.  You can find contact information on the EAP Committee pageof the AFA Alaska website.  Any contact made to AFA EAP is completely confidential.

You may also contact the Flight Attendant Drug and Alcohol Program (FADAP) Hotline at (855) 333-2327 or visit http://www.fadap.org.

In Solidarity,

Your MEC – Jeffrey Peterson, Brian Palmer, Linda Christou, Lisa Pinkston, Terry Taylor, Mario de’Medici, Melissa Osborne, Tim Green, Brice McGee and MEC EAP Committee Co-Chairpersons Elizabeth Dillon and Jeanne McCleave

Creating Wow or Woe?

The recent email from inflight leadership offended many of us and AFA was quick to respond to leaders that the message was distasteful, disappointing and will have the opposite effect that they desire.  Thank you to everyone that shared your feelings with us and spoke up to management in response to this communication. Our solidarity gives us strength as we stand up and demand that management “do the right thing,” by acknowledging our value, honoring our work ethic and praising our efforts despite the obstacles we face on a daily basis as Legacy Virgin America Flight Attendants. Feeling supported and valued by our leadership team is essential to creating a positive work environment and “creating wow” with our Flight Attendants.

Grievance vs. Gripe

The Council 35 Grievance Committee has received a lot of requests to file a grievance for concerns that are not necessarily grievance “eligible.”  To understand fully what issues can be grieved and what cannot, ask yourself the following questions:

  1. Does it violate the Work Rules, JCBA or Letters of Agreement?
  2. Does it involve formal discipline (warnings and/or termination)?

Issues that can’t be grieved:

  1. Reliability points/discipline (unless applied incorrectly—i.e., late points assessed but not actually late)
  2. Undesirable scheduling decisions that are legal according to the WR/FARs

Unfortunately, the L-VX Work Rules (WR) provide ample leeway for management and crew scheduling to make decisions that are not necessarily in the Flight Attendant’s best interest.  In these scenarios, it’s important to understand that only an actual violation can be disputed through the grievance process. There are occasions that AFA has advocated for a Flight Attendant against an unfair interpretation of the WR and brought resolution, however this may not always be applicable.  In any event, if you would like to question an incident that you have experienced, please be sure to submit an online support request to the appropriate committee for investigation.  The committee will review your case and decide on the best course of action for the situation.  For more information on grievances, please review the Grievance Procedures and System Board of Adjustment Letter of Agreement (LOA).

Reliability Steps of Discipline and FMLA

The disciplinary process for Flight Attendants on an approved Family Medical Leave (FMLA) is frustrating due to the processing times for both the discipline and the FMLA approvals.  FMLA absences can take days and sometimes weeks to process. Therefore, rather than wait until the processing is complete, management will issue discipline to preserve their right, and then retract it once the points have been converted to an FMLA approved absence.  Management is confined to disciplinary procedures outlined in the Grievance Procedures and System Board of Adjustment LOA, which not only defines the disciplinary procedure but also provides a time limit for issuing discipline.  When an absence or reliability event occurs causing a point level increase, the event may generate discipline depending on point levels.  From the day the points reached corrective action level, management is required to issue discipline within 12 business days from the event, through email and certified mail according to the Separation of Reliability and Performance Discipline LOA.  If the deadline is missed, the points that triggered the discipline are removed as the opportunity to issue the discipline has passed.  Please keep a careful eye on your reliability reports to ensure discipline is issued in a timely manner. If you are on FMLA, please be sure that the discipline has been removed once the points have been converted.

Intermittent FMLA and Special Absence Codes

Intermittent FMLA leave is designed to cover sick calls for a specific illness that is ongoing.   What many F/As don’t realize is that calls associated with the codes SNN (Sick<2 hours notice), NSH (No Show) and NCO (Non-contactable) will not be converted and will remain as USK (Unpaid Sick) although Matrix may approve the absence.  The points associated with these codes are “penalty” points for not following prescribed absence reporting procedures defined in the Reliability Policy. Matrix will approve an absence under the assumption that the call to the company to report the absence has been done according to the Reliability Policy defined in the WR. The expectation is that those on FMLA are required to report absences to the company in a timely manner.  Therefore, points received for anything other than actual sick may not be converted and approved for FMLA, unless specified by your doctor that timely reporting may not be possible with your FMLA condition. In any event, please make every effort to report your absences to CSS within the timelines outlined in the Reliability Policy to avoid this confusion. On occasion, points associated with NSH, NCO and SNN may be overturned, but only after a review by the medical leave and absence management department.  A medical review manager will interview the Flight Attendant  to determine the reason for the failure to follow call-in procedures.  Additional documentation from your FMLA doctor may be requested to verify that the inability to follow procedures was directly related to your FMLA illness. For more information about FMLA and other leaves, please visit the Absence Management page on Alaskasworld.

Boots!

Council 35 is strongly advocating for boots to be added as acceptable footwear for Flight Attendants wearing the Alaska Land’s End uniform dress or skirt. Alaska Flight Attendants have long desired the ability to wear boots during cold months and are joining the campaign to promote this change.  Currently, AS F/As can wear boots, but only on state-of-Alaska flights. Working in conjunction with the ASHSC (Air Safety, Health and Security) and Uniform committees, AFA is presenting to management the benefit and safety necessity of allowing boots to be worn by Flight Attendants during cold weather months.  If you wish to support the “Boot Campaign,” please be sure to reach out to the Council 35 Uniform Committee Chair Lisa Mueller at lisa.mueller@afaalaska.org.

Good-bye Red

As many of you know, service flow and standards are changing on Airbus and Boeing flights to provide the most uniform and consistent product possible for passengers.  The Inflight Service Committee (ISC) has been working with catering management to provide support and guidance during the transition period. ISC members will be available daily in SFO and LAX Villages in October and November to provide assistance to members with this change.  Please visit the Council 35 Facebook page for more information on dates, times and available committee members during service cut-over.  If at any time during this transition, you believe changes do not promote safety, please remember to file an ASAP report regarding the incident.

PBS Training Coming Soon!

AFA and the crew systems integration (CSI) team have been working diligently the last several months to prepare L-VX F/As for the change to the AS PBS bidding and open-time platforms.  A team of AFA volunteers working with CSI are undergoing training this month to provide support and service to L-VX F/As at bases over the next several weeks. For more information on upcoming base sits for the AFA PBS Training team, please visit the Council 35 Facebook page for dates and times of the events.

Dues Check Off Forms Still Needed!

Thank you everyone for submitting your DCO forms!  Our box has been bursting with forms and we continue to see more submissions daily. We’ve managed to bring down the outstanding dues to 20% of our base—which means about 200 Flight Attendants outstanding.  As a reminder, falling into arrears for failing to pay dues could result in separation from the company, as payment of dues is a condition of employment (which can be referenced in §26 of the JCBA). Those that have been identified as past due have received notices in their V-files and via email.  To pay late dues, please visit the AFA Online Payment Center. The dues requirement for AFA members is currently $50 per month.  The dues obligation for L-VX Flight Attendants began July 2018.  For answers to your specific dues questions and to inquire about your dues status, please contact AFA Membership Services.

Sign up for Automatic Payroll Deduction

The easiest and recommended method to pay dues is through payroll deduction.  You can sign up for automatic payroll deduction of dues by completing a Dues Check Off form.  This form can be downloaded from the AFA Alaska website or you can pick up a copy in the file room in the SFO Village.  Once you’ve completed the form, mail it to AFA International Membership Services (the address is on the bottom of the form) or place it in the AFA lock box (located in SFO file room) and we’ll mail it in on your behalf.  For more information about dues please see our April 30 communication AFA Dues for Legacy Virgin America.

AFA Online Support Center

To contact AFA and the most appropriate committee for your concerns, please submit an Online Support request.  Submitting a “ticket” and designating a department ensures the fastest response from the appropriate representative.  You may also upload files to your ticket to help provide the most detailed information to the reps assigned to your case.  For a list of committee members available to help your specific situation, please visit the Council 35 Committee Roster.

Where can I find more information about Council 35?

The best source of Council 35 information is right here, via email subscription.  Other sources of information include our website, Facebook page, and our newly created bulletin board in the SFO village computer room.  Here you will find a variety of news and helpful resources to reference for your specific area of interest.  We will be updating the board often so be sure to check it regularly for the latest news.

Are You an AFA Member?

As of today, only a small percentage of L-VX F/As have not signed up to become members.  As a reminder, the Membership Application cannot be completed online.  The hard copy paper form must be submitted directly to an AFA representative or mailed to the AFA International Office in Washington D.C. You can download and print an application, or pick one up from the bag/file rooms the next time you pass through the SFO Village.   Only AFA members may attend Membership Meetings, vote for officers, hold a position as an AFA officer or committee member or vote on Tentative Agreements (TAs).  It’s important to note that at Alaska Airlines, you are obligated to pay AFA dues regardless of your membership status and becoming a member is a condition of employment, referenced in §26 of the JCBA.

Email Address for Council 35

As of July 31, 2018, Council 35 will be representing SFO-based Flight Attendants only. All L-VX F/As based in LAX are now represented by Council 18.  Therefore the previous email address vx@afaalaska will be retired.  To contact Council 35 officers in SFO, please email us at sfo@afaalaska.org.  To contact Council 18 officers in LAX, please email lax@afaalaska.org.

FAQs

Does the Zika LOA apply to L-VX Flight Attendants?

In 2017 AFA and the company agreed to protect AS Flight Attendants from possible exposure to the Zika virus.  The Zika LOA provides guidelines for Flight Attendants and/or partners that are pregnant or attempting to become pregnant, and the ability to avoid trips to destinations that are known Zika zones.  Although the LOA was written for AS F/As, management has agreed to extend the offer to L-VX F/As.  Please refer to the Zika LOA for instructions on how to request protection.  The LOA is currently being reviewed and updated by AFA and management and the next version will codify L-VX F/As as eligible.

How do I contact Council 35 officers?

The best way to contact Council 35 officers is via email.  Emails are easier to forward for follow up and to have a record of information.  Using your personal email account, please know that concerns received by Council 35 are held in strict confidence, and will not be shared for follow up without the permission of the original sender.  Avoid using your alaskaair email to share concerns as those accounts are not private and subject to audits. To get the fastest and most thorough response, please email sfo@afalaska.org.  All officers can respond to emails sent to that address which facilitates a more efficient use of resources. Please allow at least 24 business hours for a response to any method of contact.

In Solidarity,

Your Council 35 Officers:

Melissa Osborne, President

Aladrian Hillmon, Vice President

James Ikehara, Secretary

October Base Update

Council #19 – Seattle

 

Local Council Meeting:

WHEN: November 12th, 1-5PM

WHERE: Sea Tac Office Complex – South Tower (the same building as 13 Coins), Lower Level, Earhart Room. Parking is behind the building. Bring your ticket with you and we will validate.

AGENDA: Officer and Committee Reports – bring your questions

 

Informational TidBits:

  • When will base transfers into/out of SFO be available? The latest (but not set in stone) information that we have is May 1st. Openings will be posted as they become available. 
  • Transition Training classes will be available after November for those who have been unable to attend. We do not yet have firm details.
  • There will be Flight Attendant hiring next year, tentatively 360. This number is of course subject to change.
  • The Seattle base Inflight Office will be moving into two new spaces, one with seating available next to the Spot On office, and another space in the former Virgin Village space behind Fireworks which will be largely administrative. The precise move dates have not yet been announced.
  • Need assistance after the base closes? A new procedure is in place. You will no longer be able to reach a supervisor after the Inflight Offices close. Instead, management has created a system of duty managers in Crew Scheduling. This is a new procedure, we are not sure what to expect.
  • There is a significant shortage of IMD replacements. Some flight attendants who’s devices are no longer working have been told by IT support and by Spot On that there are no replacements available. They have been told that they must check out loaners before each trip, and return them after each trip. This is unacceptable. The latest information from Inflight management is that all IMD’s will be replaced by the first of the year.

Annual Benefits Enrollment:

Annual Enrollment will open for additions and changes on October 19, 2018, for changes to take effect on January 1, 2019. There are new benefits available. The AFA Benefits Committee will be conducting Base Sits in Inflight if you have questions, or need assistance. All changes and additions to your current benefits will be completed online through the Benefits Portal. As a reminder, since Short Term Disability coverage is offset by Social Security, if you are receiving your own Social Security benefits, it makes sense to discontinue supplemental Short Term Disability coverage. We will send out base sit schedules, later this week.

November Scheduling Issue:

Most of you are aware, or will undoubtedly hear about, the problem with some pairings not being entered by the company into the NavTech program for bidding. We did not find out about this until Friday, October 12th. Bids had already been awarded.

There were more than 1,200 single segments, which were to have been single positions (D positions). In addition to the segments not having been awarded, nor bid for, no hotels had been assigned for the pairings that were created after the fact. Since it was too late on Friday to reach out hotel vendor (API) we were made aware that it was likely that hotels would not be assigned until ‘some time’ on Monday, October 15th.

If a re-bid were to have occurred, it could not have begun prior to October 16th. This would mean that it would have been closed on October 21st, with awards final no earlier than October 23rd. It would have been October 25th before trading or open time pick-ups could begin.

In Seattle, there are 148 of these pairings (not bid lines, but individual pairings). All but a few only operate on one date. The pairings will be placed into open time for trading or pick up. If the stay in open time, they will be assigned to reserves or offered as premium trips.

Our current base size is 2,317 active Flight Attendants. After weighing all available information, Council 19 decided that due to the late notice and the fact that we’re bidding for a holiday month, this was a terrible time for delayed open time and trading to occur. Further, we considered the likelihood that there would be those who were unavailable and did not hear about the rebid. Since this is unprecedented, those on vacation would have had no idea that this was going on.

We were torn between the clear contractual violation, and the effect a delay of this magnitude would have on our base. After much discussion, the MEC voted NOT to have a re-bid. This was not an easy nor a unanimous decision. This was truly a ‘rock and a hard place’ situation for your officers. I am sure that this will be unpopular with some, just as a rebid with all associated delays would have been.

Are you “Connected”?

AFA Council 19 Website:  http://afaalaska.org/sea

AFA Council 19 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AFA-Council-19-Seattle-538630496190284/

AFA Text Alerts: https://www.remind.com/join/sea19

AFA Reserve only Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/afacouncil19reserve/

 

 

In Solidarity,

Terry, Jake, Adam, Melinda and Megan

This message is for Legacy Alaska Airlines (L-AS) Flight Attendants

Trouble with the November 2018 PBS bid award

The Master Executive Council (MEC) was informed on Friday, October 12, 2018, that the wrong one-position (“D”) pairing file was loaded into NAVBLUE PBS.  That file did not contain all the one-position flights—in excess of 1000—requiring staffing coverage. Management and AFA were initially going to pursue a re-award under the usual contractual procedure.

However, management advised AFA that a longer than normal lead time would be required to re-open bidding because the correct D position pairing file had to be sent to API for hotel assignments prior to loading into NAVBLUE. Neither party was confident that API would be able to turn the file around over the weekend, so the conservative estimate was for API to finish processing the file on Monday 10/15, bidding to open Tuesday 10/16, bidding to close Sunday 10/21, bid awards to post Tuesday 10/23 and trading to finally open on Thursday 10/25.

Such an extensive delay to first round awards in order to accommodate the re-award would have been unprecedented. The MEC was even more apprehensive because November is a holiday month. However, the MEC was also extremely concerned that Flight Attendants would not be able to exercise their seniority to bid on all known flying if a re-award were to not occur; this would be in violation of Section (§) 10.E.5, which reads, “All known flying, including scheduled and confirmed 14 CFR part 121 charters, will be placed in the PBS program for bid.”

The MEC voted against a re-award via roll call

After vigorous discussion about all the implications, the MEC voted three to two for a re-award (For: C15 SAN/McGee, C18 LAX/Green and C30 ANC/Pinkston; Against: C19 SEA/Taylor and C39 PDX/de’Medici; Abstaining: C35 SFO/Osborne). As is her right under the AFA Constitution & Bylaws (C&B), Council 19 Seattle President Terry Taylor requested a roll call vote, in which an issue may be voted on using the number of members in good standing in each council. The MEC ultimately voted 2934 to 1899 against a re-award (For: C15 SAN/McGee @ 377 + C18 LAX/Green @ 1141 + C30 ANC/Pinkston @ 381 = 1899; Against: C19 SEA/Taylor @ 2317 + C39 PDX/de’Medici @ 617 = 2934; Abstaining: C35 SFO/Osborne @ 821). Council 35 SFO President Melissa Osborne abstained from both votes because the issue did not impact her members; all C35 member are currently Legacy Virgin America (L-VX) Flight Attendants and bidding under the L-VX work rules and related systems.

Implications

Consequently, November 2018 bid awards are now final and trading will commence on schedule. The tradeoff is that the MEC has waived the provisions of §10.E.5 specific to the ‘missing’ D position pairings for the month of November 2018; therefore any potential grievances pursued under that provision would have no standing in these narrow circumstances. Here is the breakdown by domicile of the missing one-position (D) pairings that will go into Open Time prior to the commencement of Open Time trading: 56 in ANC, 148 in SEA, 21 in PDX, 35 in LAX and 5 in SAN.

The MEC knows many Flight Attendants will be glad that November 2018 trading was not delayed until late October, but it is also possible that just as many will be upset by the award and the waiver to §10.E.5. This was truly a no-win situation for AFA and for all L-AS Flight Attendants. However, be assured that your elected leaders will continue to advocate for you under the democratic processes of the AFA C&B to the best of our ability.

In Solidarity,

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

Discover The AFA Online Learning Academy

As part of Membership Engagement Committee Focus Month, we’re excited to spotlight one of our core missions: empowering you with knowledge and confidence to participate more fully in our Union. When we understand how our Union works, we strengthen our collective voice and create a more engaged community. To help you on this journey, we’re […]

Scheduling Committee Meeting Recap – July 2026

This message is for pre-merger Alaska Flight Attendants On Tuesday, July 21, our pre-merger Alaska AFA Scheduling Committee Chairpersons and Representatives met in person at Alaska Global Training Center to discuss their ongoing work to represent our Flight Attendants and push for improvements in our workplace. Representing you at the meeting were Rebekah Olds (ANC), […]

Joint Contract Negotiations Session 17 – July 2026

This session, the JNC focused on refining the Reserve survey to ensure a comprehensive representation of member concerns. Significant progress was also made on Section 23 (Insurance Benefits), with proposals aimed at enhancing Flight Attendant protections and securing tailored insurance provisions. Additionally, productive discussions continued on Section 30 (Training). Further improvements are anticipated pending management’s response to our latest proposal.

Air Safety, Health, & Security Committee Meeting Recap – July 2026

On Wednesday, July 15, our Air Safety, Health, & Security Committee (ASHSC) representatives met virtually to discuss ongoing safety concerns, operational challenges, policy updates, and workplace improvements impacting Flight Attendants across the operation. Representing you at the meeting were Deb Wallstrom (ANC), David Lake (SEA), Kalin Lackey (PDX), Bradley Young (SFO and MEC ASHSC Vice […]

Hotel Committee Meeting Recap – July 2026

On Monday, July 13, our AFA Hotel Committee Chairpersons met in-person to receive an update about current layover hotels and transportation providers and discuss concerns with management. Representing you at the meeting were Dori Marron (ANC), Jarod McNeill (SEA pmAS), Kelly Hepworth (PDX), Hilary Streem (SFO), Le’a Tupola (LAX/SEA pmHA), Brian Sherill (LAX pmAS), and […]

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