Q:     Is there an estimate of when this will be put to vote?

A:     The voting schedule is below:

• Ballot mail date:   March 13
• Voting opens:   March 16
• Vote Count Date: April 3

The voting schedule is found on the Merger TAs & Info page and additional voting information on the TA Voting Info page.

Q:     I’m a pmAS SEAFA and commute from the Bay Area. Can I go to a SFO roadshow or will that be more geared towards pmVX FAs’ needs and issues?

A:     All Flight Attendants are welcome to attend any of the road shows.  The JNC anticipates that the SFO and LAX roadshows will have additional focus on the pmVX transition issues, but we will be presenting the same basic information. It’s likely the question and answer section will encompass a lot of pmVX questions. The corollary is true for any pmVX FA who wishes to attend a roadshow in ANC, SEA, PDX or SAN: the same basic information will be presented, but the Q&A will likely have a lot of pmAS questions.

The roadshow schedule can be found on the Merger TAs & Info page.

[Note: This JNC Blog post was revised in “[REVISED] What Happens if the TA is Voted Down?” The following strikeout text will remain for reference.]

Q:     Without this extension, VX stays at their current pay and awful work rules until when? When we get a whole new contract is that right? And then our new brothers and sisters from VX will be voting for things on that contract they have not experienced or worked under, including, work rules and company ethics, such as broken promises. Also correct? I’m trying to see the whole picture- short term and long term. And then decide where we (all) make the best strategic decision to be strongest and most united.

A:     You are correct on all points regarding the VX situation and what would happen if the VX FAs do not come over to the AS CBA (which would become the JCBA) as a result of a ratified TA.

Q:     If we say No to this “first offer,” you will be sent right back to the table, and we will get more because they [management] never give us their “best offer” first, correct? Some people think that if they vote no, we will go back into negotiations and get a larger [pay] increase and the 480 improvements.

A:      Contract negotiations is not like buying a car or a home. The “you never accept the first offer no matter what’s in the deal” approach is very troubling. Just remember that the parties passed multiple proposals prior to reaching an agreement, and the JNC rejected many of management’s offers. Therefore, the TA is not management’s first offer. Although it is possible that there might be improvements in another pass, there are no guarantees either. Additionally, it takes time to go through the process again.

Q:      If this is voted down, would we go right back to the table or is this a one time merger TA offer? Would we then hold off until openers for the full contract negotiations coming up at the end of the year?

A:     If the TA is voted down, management has told us that they will wait until October when the earlier re-opener for our Section 6 negotiations is slated to begin under our existing CBA. If that occurs, we will go into full Section 6 negotiations and our entire CBA will be potentially open for re-negotiation. Those talks have historically taken a significant amount of time. There are no guarantees regarding any provision to stay the same or to improve (e.g. pay raises, 480, etc.). Unless the parties were able to achieve a Merger Agreement TA2 prior to October, we would be back at the bargaining table potentially negotiating a full contract, yet with pmAS and pmVX on extremely disparate pay and work rules.

Q:    Will pmVX being getting back pay for per diem too?

A:     Yes.  Section 22.A. (Per Diem) of the L-VX Agreement states that effective “date of ratification”, per diem will be two dollars and fifty cents ($2.50) per hour away from domicile. This per diem rate will be retroactive to January 1, 2018.

Q:    Am I correct in assuming that lead pay (pmVX, pre-TA) will be recalculated to AS “A” pay for back pay purposes?

A:    That is not the correct assumption.  If the TA is ratified, the L-VX ITL program pay will not be changing until two bid months following the bid month of ratification (April).  Any ITL “retro” pay back to January 1, 2018, would be calculated at the new JCBA pay rates and the current ITL premium.

See Monthly Parking Stipend – $75 >

Q.  When does incentive override phase out and when does AS PPP start for L-VX FAs?

A.  The incentive pay will phase out for the L-VX Flight Attendants at Full Integration – when both groups of Flight Attendants fly together after being awarded schedules following a combined PBS bid.  The company is targeting the March 2019 bid month for this milestone.  At that point, the L-VX Flight Attendants will transition to the AS Productivity Premium Program.

Q.    VX retro pay – will this include my ITL override and my incentive pay?

A.    Yes. The pay increases retroactive to January 1, 2018, will be applied to all incentive and premium pays.

Q.    What does legacy mean?

A.   Legacy refers to the “pre-merger” partition of either Virgin America (VX) or Alaska Airlines (AS). The terms we use are Legacy-VX (L-VX) and Legacy-AS (L-AS).  This denotes the partition that a Flight Attendant was initially hired into, no matter when.

It is somewhat confusing, because we are all Alaska Airlines Flight attendants now that the FAA has granted the Single Operating Certificate (SOC).  However, the Flight Attendant groups are kept separate for pay and work rules and flying.  Management continues to hire on “both sides of the partition” and uses the term “Alaska Airbus Flight Attendant” to refer to L-VX Flight Attendants and “Alaska Boeing Flight Attendant” to indicate a L-AS Flight Attendant.

Note: This JNC blog post was revised and updated. See Commuter Policy: Ground Commuting [JCBA].