May 25, 2016 21:00

The AFA Alaska Master Executive Council (MEC) officers, Local Executive Council (LEC) presidents, and many other LEC officers and committee chairpersons just finished attending the 44^th Annual AFA Board of Directors (BOD) meeting in Atlanta, Georgia. This annual meeting is where AFA conducts the business of our union at the international level. More detailed information about the BOD will be released soon.

Special MEC Merger Meeting

In conjunction with the BOD meeting, a special MEC merger meeting was held on Wednesday, May 25^th. The purpose of the special MEC meeting with AFA International President Sara Nelson, the International officers and certain members of AFA staff was to discuss the proposed merger of Alaska Airlines and Virgin America in accordance with Section X [Merger Policy…] of the AFA International Policy Manual. In addition to the MEC officers (including Council 18 Los Angeles and Council 15 San Diego presidents-elect), Merger Representatives Sandra Morrow and Marie Maxwell as well as many local officers participated in the discussions. The MEC and AFA International are in the process of coordinating a communication to membership regarding the merger.

Dissatisfaction with the pairings discussed during the May MEC Meeting at the BOD

As was indicated in the Open Time Trial Update May 2016, the MEC has received a lot of feedback recently regarding dissatisfaction with the pairings as well as with several of management’s communications regarding the pairings. This topic was thoroughly discussed at our MEC meeting that was held this past Saturday in conjunction with the BOD. The MEC is diligently working on a communication to you on that subject, so continue to stay tuned!

In Solidarity,

Your MEC – Jeffrey Peterson, Brian Palmer, Yvette Satterlee, Lisa Pinkston, Laura Masserant, Cathy Gwynn, Sandra Morrow, Stephen Couckuyt and LEC Presidents-elect Brice McGee and Tim Green

May 25, 2016 07:21

Seattle Flight Attendants,

Please find the attached minutes from the May 17th LEC Base Meeting.

Also, the local committee chair reports are listed below.

AFA-CWA Council 19 Base Meeting

May 17^th 1-4

I. Call to Order: Meeting was called to order by Laura at 1:10pm

a. Call for late agenda items – None

b. Late agenda items – None

c. Announcements – The merger with Virgin America and Survey Results posted

II. AFA BOD Agenda Items

14 agenda items discussed and can be found on the AFA International site

Laura and Adam led in depth discussions on all 14 agenda items. Council 19 members, in attendance, provided excellent and direction to Laura on how she should vote at the BOD.

III. LEC Update

A. Officer Update

1. LEC President, Laura Masserant: It’s been busy. During time in Greece (Crete) I take phone calls, text messages, and answer emails. I am always happy to discuss my work and commute with any of the members. I am in the States through the end of June and back the middle of July through mid August.

Attending the AFA BOD in Atlanta 5/20 and returning on 5/20. Linda and Adam will also be attending. Remember that anyone can come to a BOD if in good standing.

June 12^th through 15^th Laura is attending the CWA President’s meeting and Legislative conference in Washington DC.

MEC meeting is June 28-30^th and the MEC will be interviewing for the “Merger Integration Committee.” Over 30 Seattle FA’s applied for the “Merger Committee.” This was an amazing turn out!

Council 19’s FB page is being reignited to help address scheduling questions and concerns. Make sure you follow us on Facebook: AFA Council 19 Seattle.

Grievance work has slowed down since the holidays. We have no reports of any discipline as the result of “RED FLAG” customer comments.

2. LEC VP, Jake Jones: I am extremely busy with scheduling issues, pairing building. I am in the office most of the week dealing with scheduling issues. I am not doing as many grievances as scheduling duties and pairing work along with flying takes most of my time.

3. LEC Secretary, Linda Christou: I continue my work updating the Salsa database along with membership status. Meeting and grievances have slowed down a little and I fill in for Laura, in the AFA office, when she is in Greece.

4. Committee Reports: Sent out in an update to Council and posted on our AFA webpage.

IV. Open Time Trading Q & A

A little history~ In 2006-2012 FAs were dumping entire schedule into OT. Ann Ardizonne discovered how FAs were “downtrading” schedules and began started “checkerboarding” OT. A grievance was filed by AFA, which was denied by the company and went to arbitration. AFA won. However, as part of the arbitrator’s decision, several aspects of OT came into play, withholding trips,” checker boarding,” and a loss of transparency occurred.

As a result, FAs sought a different OT system during negotiations. Going back to book brings back Crew Scheduling control over Open Time, checkerboarding, loss of transparency, withhold trips and close/open the days after first 24hrs at their leisure. But typically, days remained closed.

The negotiation committee conducted a very thorough investigation in the back to book OpenTime system to provide something similar in nature, but ultimately different. Something FAs were adamant to achieve.

We even conducted a survey by Hart and received feedback on how FAs used open time and trading functionality.

Jake spent a great deal of time at the end of the meeting going over the functions and system mishaps of OT. He did a small presentation on how to trade with the codes. Council 19 members had some great questions and several ideas to help others learn the system came forward.

JCTE is up and running in October. Unfortunately, staffing still is a problem and we are about 80

FA’s short right now and even with new classes coming online, we still will be short.

As a result of short staffing, management moved average flying up to cover reserve numbers. Staffing based off of the 3^rd quarter (high QPP flying).

V. Virgin America Q & A

FA’s asking about how the seniority would work and integration according the AFA Constitution

And By-Laws is “adjusted date of hire.” This is the task of the “integration committee.” This is something that will be discussed at the special merger meeting at the BOD on the 25^th. More information will be forthcoming after this meeting.

Virgin is part of TWU and are without a contract, but do have TA’d sections.

VI. Budget Review

For information on the budget please contact LEC President, Laura Masserant

Meeting adjourned at 4:20pm

SEA Air Safety, Health and Security Committee Update

AIR QUALITY

NEW Air Quality Cards are now available in the SEA ready room. Please pick up some for your crew the next time you check in upstairs. They are in a box by the co-mail baskets.

SPACE BINS

Stephanie Garnett and Ronda Ruderman participated in a review of the Boeing Space Bins. As a result of their feedback Boeing has designed an assist mechanism similar to the ones on the BSI bins, which will provide some assistance. If a bin is extra heavy 2 F/As should close together.

CARRY ON BAGGAGE

Procedures in your manual support caution in assisting with heavy bags and you are not required to lift bags. This is still, by far, our top injury. You can assist by finding a location and directly customer to place item, lend a hand while using proper body mechanics, and implement the “Tug Test.”

MAIN CABIN SERVICE FLOW

Steve Vincent and Stephanie Garnett participated in a Main Cabin Service Flow Workshop.

SEA BASE MEETINGS

We hold a local Seattle Base Meeting twice a year and invite six Flight Attendants. These have been very popular and effective. It’s a great way to provide input to the Safety Committee and become familiar with base issues. The next meeting will be in October. Look for the invitation in your Outlook email from Carmen Williams, SEA Base Manager.

PORT OF SEA EMPLOYEE BUS

Take care when getting on and off the bus. If the bus is not lowered to the curb, feel free to ask the driver.

AFA WEBSITE

There is a lot of good information on our AFA CWA website. Click on the Safety Tab! http://www.afacwa.org/safety_health_security

Interested in air safety, health and security? We have openings on this committee! Please contact Susan Lee or Steve Vincent for more information.

SEA LEC Chair, Susan Lee and SEA Vice Chair, Steven Vincent, Ronda Ruderman, Laura Masserant

Benefits Committee: Medical Leaves, Workers’ Compensation and Maternity

Our committee is always busy with helping our fellow Flight Attendants with Leave of Absences, on the job injuries, FMLA, and many more questions. We continue to partner with Inflight, when needed, to help resolve issues. Many calls we received are basic questions regarding our medical plan, inquires on medical leaves and the process of applying for a leave, and the differences between FMLA vs Sick Family, etc.

The medical leave handbook in available online on your Flight Attendant homepage under the FORMS tab. It’s important to review the handbook, write down your questions, and contact one of your committee members PRIOR to starting your leave.

We are seeking additional members for this important committee! Contact Kathy O’Malley for more information.

SEA LEC Benefits Chair, Kathy O’Malley

Committee members: Laura Masserant and Linda Christou.

Employee Assistance Program and Professional Standards

MEC EAP Vice Chair, Jeanne McCleave, SAN LEC Secretary, Melanie Buker, and I are working closely with management on a return to cabin drug/alcohol change in policy. We are also working closely with Heather Healy and Skywest airlines to review other return to cabin policies. We are hopeful to have a rough draft of the Alaska Airlines return to cabin policy by the FADAP conference in September!

The current statistics for EAP cases, system wide for Alaska, is:

2,762 cases for 2015= 88.38%, which is the highest in the industry.

SEA: 1,510 cases = 87.10%

To register for the

6th Annual FADAP Conference:

www.fadap.org

SEA LEC EAP Chair, Lisa Haugen

Committee members: Andrea Korican, Carole Babcock, Lori Collins, Mimi Sterling, Norm Bernard, and Paula Minor

Government Affairs

Please welcome Kris Hall as the new LEC Chair for Government Affairs! Kris has been very active on this committee since joining last fall and will fill some big shoes left by Krystle Cook~ but Kris will fill those shoes just fine! Kris has spent time with Krystle attending several Legislative affairs conferences and is fully prepared to tackle this important role.

Thank you, Krystle, for your dedication and undying energy that you have provided the committee! We wish you all the best in PDX!

The committee is working extra hard with several key pieces of legislation that directly affect Flight Attendants: FAA Reauthorization Bill, 10 hrs rest, and Deny NAI.

For more information on these important issue visit our webpage: afaalaska.org.

LEC Chair, Kris Hall

Committee members: Adam Clarey, Jennifer Wise MacColl, Steve Poynter

Hotel Committee

DTW~ As of June 1st, FAs will start layovers. FAs will stay at the Doubletree. Nichole Turner is tasked with sharing information on food options. The hotel van will be available to transport crews to restaurants up to a 5-mile radius.

IAH~Currently 2 hotels being used: Marriott Woodlands and the Hilton Greenspoint.

Marriott Woodlands is the long layover hotel.

Hilton Greenspoint is for layovers less than a 13hrs. The Hilton has a van that will drive within a 5 mile radius so crews can get food.

Everyone must remember that we do not have language in our contract for short or long layover hotels.

CABO~ Unfortunately, the hotel will not negotiate a lower meal cost. Crews do receive the complimentary breakfast.

OGG~The only hotel that AFA recommends is the Marriott Wailea.

The Marriott will finish their renovations by the end of Nov’16.

AFA recommends Alaska move 10 rooms to the Maui Coast to help with room placement and Chad Koehnke agreed.

OAK~ Alaska’s new security representative, Shawn McBride, the downtown Marriott and decided the hotel is unsafe for crew. MEC Vice Chair & SEA LEC Chair, Jodi Snow, is reaching out to Shawn McBride to discus this decision with the OAK Marriott.

SLC~ FYI…new transportation: Super Shuttle.

If you are interested in the joining this committee please contact Jodi!

SEA LEC Hotel Chair, Jodi Snow

Committee members: Jimmy Alfred, Brian Palmer

Inflight Service Committee~ ISC

Please note that we have a new MEC chair for this committee, Stephanie Garnett! Stephanie’s plan is to increase inclusion with the committee members/line holders and the company.

You are going to see a lot of things happening in the next year and don’t be surprised to see your flight testing different types of service flow an equipment for our new premium service. There have been 2 workshops that both ISC members, along with Air, Safety, and Health Committee members, have participated in. They have learned a lot and have been tweaking and time testing the flow in hopes that we will offer a consistent and safe service throughout the cabin.

New POS devices should be here in July and this should help speed up our service. We are seeking a better way to address catering concerns and hoping that Lucretia can come up with some way to streamline a way to address the concerns or shortages from a particular flight in a speedy way.

Tidbits are returning~ We are seeking ideas and suggestions from our group to help streamline our service and to give a consistent experience for our customers.

Announcements are now on your IMD. It is important to get in the habit of using your IMD to make your announcements and to limit your announcements to only the required announcements.

Menus are being updated and we will soon go back to having monthly cycles of food. FC menus are being refreshed and you could possibly see a version of small plates come back in 2017.

We are seeking several flight attendants to join this important committee. Contact Linda Christou for more information!

SEA LEC Chair, Linda Christou

Committee members: Ronda Ruderman, Donnelle Porter, Rob Atterton, and Tim Roddy.

Membership

As of May 10^th we have 2012 flight attendants based in Seattle and maintain an outstanding balance of dues owed of $7500.00. If you receive an invoice from AFA International it means that you owe past dues. Your dues come out of each 20^th paycheck and it is likely you did not have enough pay to cover the deduction. Your deduction counts towards the current month (i.e. May 20^th is for dues for the month of May). If you are in Bad Standing and in a Standing 5 for more than 90 days (Section 26 C, D & E) you can be invoked by International and face termination by Alaska.

Things that could cause you to be in arrears:

You are on a leave and not coordinating any type of sick leave or vacation pay with your leave (according to the C&B’s you must pay your first three months of a leave if not coordinating).
You are on a leave and coordinating sick leave or vacation but not coordinating enough to have dues auto deducted.
You flew low TFP in a given month and not enough to auto deduct.

Changes of Address/Email/Phone Numbers

Access the AFA International change of address form

Access the AFA Alaska email update form

Changing your address in PeopleSoft or with the company does not automatically change your address with AFA. To ensure that your contact information with AFA is kept up-to-date, please submit a change of address to AFA International when you make a change in PeopleSoft.

A Special Note About Email Address Changes

If you have a change to your email address, you’ll also need to submit a separate email update to AFA Alaska, as the AFA International and AFA Alaska databases are separate systems that are not linked. Please make sure to complete both the AFA International change of address and AFA Alaska email update forms above.

Reserve Committee

We have been busy daily answering Reserve questions and helping to resolve reserve issues. On going concerns: Interruption of 9 hr Silent Rest, 4 K flying assignments and minimum rest. As summer approaches and our Reserve Numbers increase, we will have more coaching to do for those that have not been on Reserve for sometime.

We have just welcomed 11 New Hires from Class 2016-1 and are hoping for more from Class 2016-2 on July 1!!!!!

SEA LEC Reserve Committee Chair, Carole Babcock

Committee members: Julie Pinson, Dee Murphy, Judy Dybing, Phoebe Ganthman

Scheduling Committee

The SEA scheduling committee has been busy campaigning to “Voice” flight attendants concerns to management regarding the deteriorating quality of pairings, lack of flexibility, and high line averages that have particularly plagued the SEA base over the last 3 months. We seem to have their attention for the moment, but will press on if things don’t improve. We meet monthly with management.

We are pleased to add Denise Woodley to the scheduling committee. Denise has been an advocate for scheduling issues over the past few months and we are looking forward to her help on the committee.

Our next scheduling committee meeting will be held June 7th.

SEA LEC Scheduling Chair and Vice Chair, Martin Vance and Rita Tillou

Committee members: Rosalinda Chamberlin, Kelly Letourneau, Christina Frees, and Denise Woodley

Uniform Committee

Camp shirt

Feedback has not been positive and FAs complain the cut too full and does not breath well. Also, the shirt shows sweat stains.

Women’s dress

The new dress replaces the jewel neck dress it is not an addition. Both can be worn but Lands Ends is no longer carrying the jewel neck dress and inventory will not be re-stocked.

Notes from Uniform working Committee Meeting 4/14 (Attended by MEC Uniform Chair, Bob Moore.)

Group Exercise

Went around the room and asked all to share how each topic (listed below) is important to their work group.

Communications

Standards

Design

Wear test

Fit Tour

Then, we broke into five groups to work on each topic as a team and then share what each group come up with.

Reviewed Goals and expectation for the working committee.

Reviewed time line for the uniform project.

Reviewed American Airlines Uniform Ambassador Program.

Would be the wear testers to promote and inform with employees updates ( I spoke with Ron and explained the expectation that AFA committee member would be used and we need projections for how many at each base if we need to add members.)

Wear test projected to begin the first quarter of 2017

SEA LEC Chair, Dean Silva Health

Committee members: Tyler Vail, Susan Knox, Timothy Christian, AnnMarie Laura, Grace Dunning, and Sala McDaniel

May 20, 2016 05:00

Pursuant to Section X.D [Merger Policy and Related Employee Protective Provisions: Contractual Protection] of the AFA-CWA Constitution & Bylaws (C&B), the AFA Alaska Master Executive Council (MEC) is seeking two members in good standing (dues current) to serve on the Joint Negotiating Committee (JNC) for merged contract negotiations.

As of today, the Virgin America Inflight Team Members (ITMs), who are represented by the Transport Workers Union of America (TWU), do not have a first contract. However, they have achieved several tentative agreements on individual sections, so it is very possible they will have a ratified contract by the time the acquisition/merger receives regulatory approval from the Department of Justice. Even if the Virgin America ITMs do not have a first contract, management will still need to negotiate with AFA to address the merger/integration of the work force. Although there is no statutory oversight of contract bargaining in a merger like there is in Section 6 negotiations under the Railway Labor Act (RLA), this can be an opportunity for Flight Attendants to achieve improvements.

Purpose of the JNC

The purpose of the JNC is to obtain interim safeguards, including a fence agreement with management (which maintains separate Inflight operations for a specified period of time), and merging the collective bargaining agreement(s) and/or respective work rules. Many issues will need to be decided in order to provide for a smooth transition into one, combined carrier.

Scope of the JNC

From AFA-CWA C&B Section X.D.4: “The members of the negotiating committee shall have complete and full authority to resolve any and all trackage* disputes between the flight attendant groups including those arising from the interpretation or implementation of any agreement embodying interim safeguards.” *Trackage is a somewhat antiquated term originally associated with the railroad industry.

Duties of the JNC

Fully prepare for merged contract negotiations.
Attend initial training of new JNC members.
Survey/poll the membership regarding bargaining objectives.
Conduct a review of the respective agreements (or work rules) to identify commonalities, differences, areas of cultural preference, benefits of each agreement (or work rules), and unique issues associated with specific air service.
Review collective bargaining agreements and employment terms at comparable airlines.
Create the union’s opening position (“opener”) for joint collective bargaining agreement (JCBA) negotiations utilizing the work of the JNC, industry comparisons and membership feedback/polling results.
Interface with counterparts at Virgin America and engage in discussions to reach mutually acceptable provisions on merging the two Flight Attendant groups.

Expectations/Qualifications

Appointed by the AFA Alaska MEC and terms are served to completion at the approved of the MEC. Takes direction from the chairperson of the JNC (i.e. in this case the AFA Alaska MEC president) with input from the AFA Int’l Collective Bargaining Department (i.e. staff negotiator) and Legal Department (i.e. staff attorney). After successful ratification of the JCBA will continue to serve as a contract interpretation resource for the JCBA.
Maintain a complete record of negotiations including proposals, notes and communications, and such record is the property of AFA-CWA.
Public interactions (including social media) must reflect favorably on AFA Alaska. If requested by AFA Alaska, JNC members must be willing to reasonably limit social media interactions for the duration of JCBA 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.

Compensation/Expenses

6 TFP for each 8 hours of work (0.75 TFP per hour)
5% override on TFP in lieu of per diem
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.

Application Process

Interested candidates should submit an expression of interest and resume to MEC Secretary-Treasurer Yvette Satterlee at satterlee@afaalaska.org. The deadline for applications is Friday, June 17^th at 5 PM PDT.
Yvette will contact applicants to coordinate an interview with the MEC. Interviews will be held on Wednesday, June 29, 2016.
The MEC president is an ex-officio (i.e. “by right of holding another office”) member of the JNC.

* * *

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

In solidarity,

Your MEC – Jeffrey Peterson, Brian Palmer, Yvette Satterlee, Lisa Pinkston, Laura Masserant, Cathy Gwynn, Sandra Morrow, Stephen Couckuyt; LEC Presidents-elect Tim Green and Brice McGee

May 19, 2016 20:00

Your Master Executive Council (MEC) Officers, Local Executive Council (LEC) Presidents, and many other LEC Officers and Committee Chairs will be attending the 44^th Annual AFA Board of Directors (BOD) meeting being held next week in Atlanta, Georgia. This annual meeting is where AFA conducts the business of our union at the international level.

Schedule of Events

Saturday, May 21

Regular MEC Meeting

Sunday, May 22

Executive Board Meeting (MEC Presidents from each airline)

Monday, May 23

Board of Directors Meeting
Equality March to Center for Civil and Human Rights
Bridge The Gap Campaign Picketing

Tuesday, May 24

Board of Directors Meeting continues

Wednesday, May 25

Special MEC Meeting

BOD Meeting Agenda Items

Your LEC President represents you and the other members of your Local Council on the Board of Directors and will be casting votes on your behalf at the BOD meeting. Your MEC Officers serve in an ex-officio capacity on the BOD but do not have voting privileges.

A total of 14 advance agenda items were submitted for consideration by the Board at this meeting. Each LEC held a Local Council meeting over the past several weeks to discuss these agenda items and gain your feedback. You can find a list of these agenda items and complete language at http://afa-bod.org/index-of-agenda-items.

MEC Meetings

In conjunction with the BOD meeting, two MEC meetings will also be conducted; the regular May MEC meeting being held on Saturday, May 21 and a special MEC meeting on Wednesday, May 25. The purpose of the special MEC meeting with International President Sara Nelson, the International Officers and certain members of AFA staff is to discuss the proposed merger of Alaska Airlines and Virgin America in accordance with section X.B.5 of the AFA International Policy Manual.

Equality March and Bridge the Gap Picketing

As part of the BOD meeting, AFA leaders will be participating in an equality march from the meeting site to the Center for Civil and Human Rights in downtown Atlanta. Once there, a picketing activity will be conducted to support the Bridge the Gap campaign. Bridge the Gap is an AFA International campaign designed to build public awareness of the disparate treatment of Flight Attendants at regional carriers. Despite flying under the same airline name as their mainline counterparts, Flight Attendants at regional airlines are often paid substantially less and suffer from longer duty days, less crew rest, and a host of other work rules that lag behind the industry. You can find more information about the Bridge the Gap campaign at http://www.afacwa.org/bridge_the_gap.

Questions?

If you have any questions or thoughts about the BOD meeting or any of the submitted agenda items, please contact your LEC President.

In Solidarity,

Your MEC – Jeffrey Peterson, Brian Palmer, Yvette Satterlee, Lisa Pinkston, Laura Masserant, Cathy Gwynn, Sandra Morrow, Stephen Couckuyt and LEC Presidents-Elect Timothy Green and Brice McGee

May 18, 2016 17:00

As reflected in the Open Time Trial Survey Results for May 2016, 87.8% of respondents reported they do not understand or are still learning the Open Time trading codes (TO/DD/CP/TX/no code) and how to trade sequences in Open Time based on those codes.

Open Time Trading with the Codes Quick Reference Guide

Consequently, AFA Alaska has prepared a short (six page) Open Time Trading codes quick reference guide. The Master Executive Council (MEC) thanks the Council 30 Anchorage Local Executive Council (LEC) officers and Scheduling Committee chairperson for developing the guide.

>>> Click here to view the “Open Time Trading with the Codes” quick reference guide in a Portable Document Format (pdf). <<<

Click the following to view each page of the “Open Time Trading with the Codes” quick reference guide in picture format (jpg):

If you have any questions, contact your local Scheduling Committee or Local Executive Council (LEC) officers.

In Solidarity,

Your MEC – Jeffrey Peterson, Brian Palmer, Yvette Satterlee, Laura Masserant, Cathy Gwynn, Sandra Morrow, Stephen Couckuyt; LEC Presidents-elect Tim Green, Brice McGee; MEC Scheduling Committee Chairperson Jake Jones

Open Time Trading with the Codes Quick Reference Guide

May 16, 2016 22:00

The Open Time Trial Survey for May 2016 concluded this morning (May 16, 2016), and the results are now available.

Survey completion information

1,055 surveys were completed and 87 were partially completed. A small number of Flight Attendants submitted more than one survey, in which case only the last submission was counted. There were also a few entries without Arctic numbers, so those were excluded; going forward the survey has been updated to disallow submissions without Arctic numbers. The Master Executive Council (MEC) encourages all Flight Attendants to contribute to future monthly Open Time Trial surveys.

Survey overview

The results show a clear need to improve general understanding of the Open Time Trial and a strong dissatisfaction for the current system.

Understanding of the Open Time trading codes

87.8% of respondents do not understand or are still learning the Open Time trading codes (TO/DD/CP/TX/no code) and how to trade sequences in Open Time based on those codes.

AFA Alaska is putting the finishing touches on an Open Time trading codes quick reference guide and will publish that very soon.

Understanding of the estimated time frame for making any programming changes to Open Time

A majority (53.6%) reported they do not understand the time frame involved for making any programming changes to the Open Time system.

Based on membership feedback the MEC will make a determination on the future of Open Time:

Prior to making a determination, the MEC would like to gather several months of survey results and other data pursuant to AFA Alaska CBA §12.F.8.d [Exchange of Sequences: Open Time Trial] for review. The Open Time Trial is scheduled to last up to a year before a final decision has to be made–unless the Association and management mutually agree to extend the trial.

If the MEC determines to go “back to book,” reverting to the former Open Time system could take approximately one year. This is because the new JCTE crew management system would need to be reprogrammed with the rules for the former OT system. (It is currently being programmed with the new OT rules.)

If we do go “back to book,” AFA will start negotiating a new system as outlined in CBA §12.F.9 [Exchange of Sequences: Open Time Trial: Cancellation of Open Time Trial]. Implementation of a replacement OT system would likely take a minimum of nine months after reaching an agreement with management.

Strong dissatisfaction with the Open Time Trial

76.1% indicated they are dissatisfied or very dissatisfied with the Open Time Trial. If a decision were to be made today regarding the future of the Open Time Trial, 81.1% of respondents would prefer to revert “back to book” to the old Open Time system (based on IT limitations) and begin negotiations on a new system; whereas 18.9% would prefer to keep the current system.

Detailed survey results

>>> Click here to view the detailed AFA Alaska Open Time Trial Survey Results for May 2016. <<<

AFA Alaska will review the survey results with management at our upcoming biweekly Open Time Trial Review meeting. Additionally, your MEC officers are very concerned about these statistics and will thoroughly discuss the survey results at this month’s MEC meeting; the May MEC meeting will occur this coming weekend in Atlanta prior to the annual AFA-CWA Board of Directors meeting.

In solidarity,

Your MEC – Jeffrey Peterson, Brian Palmer, Yvette Satterlee, Lisa Pinkston, Laura Masserant, Cathy Gwynn, Sandra Morrow, Stephen Couckuyt; LEC Presidents-elect Tim Green and Brice McGee

AFA Alaska Open Time Trial Survey Results May 2016

May 13, 2016 08:00

Pursuant to AFA Alaska Collective Bargaining Agreement §12.F.8.D.5 [Exchange of Sequences: Open Time Trial], the Master Executive Council (MEC) is conducting a monthly poll of membership regarding your satisfaction with Open Time. Your candid responses will help the MEC determine the course of the Open Time trial.

It is important to focus on Open Time functionality, not the technical issues with logging into the system, when answering the questions.

You must enter your Arctic number in order to take the survey. We’re asking for your Arctic number to ensure each Flight Attendant receives one vote per month and is not for tracking purposes. If a survey is submitted more than once with the same Arctic number, only the last response will be counted for this month.

> > > To take the AFA Alaska Open Time Trial Survey for May 2016 click here. < < <

To capture the data for Open Time trading in April/May for the May 2016 bid month, the survey will close on Monday, May 16^th at 9am Pacific Time. That is three days from now, so it is important that you do not delay taking it.

Going forward, the MEC intends to open the survey just after PBS bids are due on the 10^th and close the survey at the same time as this month (the 16^th at 9am PT). The monthly survey will be timed to capture the data for each successive month (e.g. the next survey will be from June 10^th – 16^th to capture data from May/June Open Time trading for the June 2016 bid month).

In the interest of full transparency, the MEC will publish a summary of results once the responses have been tallied. Thank you in advance for your feedback!

In Solidarity,

Your MEC – Jeffrey Peterson, Brian Palmer, Yvette Satterlee, Lisa Pinkston, Laura Masserant, Cathy Gwynn, Sandra Morrow, Stephen Couckuyt; LEC Presidents-elect Tim Green and Brice McGee

May 11, 2016 23:54

Stay Informed

and

Be Involved!

AFA-CWA Council 19

Base Meeting

When: Tuesday, May 17th, 2016

Where: Meeting location will be at the BEIJING ROOM on the mezzanine level (south end) of SEA-TAC Airport at the Sea-Tac Conference Center

Time: 1pm-4pm AFTER OPEN TIME!

(Parking will be validated on any floor except floor 4 in terminal)

Your AFA Officers are preparing for the annual AFA Board of Directors (BOD) meeting and we need to discuss the agenda items for the BOD and seek your input. We will be posting the agenda items for review and look forward to discussing them with you at the May 17th meeting.

Please bring all your Open Time trading questions for our scheduling experts; we will be having a Q&A regarding Open Time trading. If you can’t attend our base meeting send us your trading questions to sea.scheduling@afaalaska.org.

We will be discussing Alaska’s acquisition of Virgin America, and share any information we have about merging together.

Agenda

I. Call meeting to order

A. Call for late agenda items

B. Late agenda items

C. Announcements

II. AFA BOD agenda items

III. LEC Update

A. Officer Update

1. LEC President Report

2. LEC VP Report

3. LEC Sec and Membership Report

4. Committee Report

B. Open Time Trading Q&A

C. Virgin America Q&A

D. Budget Review

In Solidarity,

Your Council 19 Officers

May 11, 2016 13:45

The AFA Alaska Master Executive Council (MEC) donated $1,000 dollars on behalf of Alaska Flight Attendants to the American Cancer Society’s Relay for Life. SEA Flight Attendant Krista Livingston, SEA Inflight Supervisor, Tina Gamache and Tom Richardson are Co-Captains of the Alaska Airlines Inflight Kickin’ Cancer Team. They are out on the Seattle concourses today (Wednesday, May 11, 2016) with other volunteers continuing to raise money and support for this important cause.

Many of our Flight Attendants, family members and friends have experienced cancer and it is time to rally for them and help find a cure!

If you haven’t already donated, please take a minute to click on the link and donate~ any amount helps!

http://main.acsevents.org/site/TR/RelayForLife/RFLCY16GW?pg=entry&fr_id=75481

In Solidarity,

Your MEC – Jeffrey Peterson, Brian Palmer, Yvette Satterlee, Lisa Pinkston, Laura Masserant, Cathy Gwynn, Sandra Morrow, Stephen Couckuyt; LEC Presidents-elect Tim Green and Brice McGee

May 11, 2016 05:00

[Note: This is a longer communication containing a lot of information, so you might want to read this when you have a decent amount of time set aside.]

Beyond frustrated with Open Time

Your AFA Alaska Master Executive Council (MEC) understands that our Members are beyond frustrated with Open Time. Please know that we are doing everything possible to ensure Alaska Airlines management (1) implements the language of the new Open Time system in the way it was negotiated, and (2) that Flight Attendants can access Open Time without it slowing/”hiccupping”/freezing/crashing/etc.

Speaking of Open Time slowing/hiccupping/freezing/crashing/et cetera…

Speaking of Open Time slowing/”hiccupping”/freezing/crashing/et cetera, the login issues are not directly related to the new Open Time system of trading. The reality is that no matter which Open Time rules are being used (old vs. new), Maestro/eMaestro has been on its last legs for far too long. Ideally Maestro/eMaestro should have been replaced years ago. The system is designed to handle around 500 connections at any given time (including Crew Scheduling, administrative access, reports, etc.). When everybody is trying to log on at the same time when Open Time opens, the system almost always slows down—or worse.

What can be done about the connections? The MEC and management previously agreed to more widely stagger the opening of trading. This was done in order to spread out the number of users attempting to access Maestro/eMaestro at any given time and therefore reduce the load on the system. See AFA Alaska’s New Temporary FA to FA and Open Time Trading Schedule update from November 17, 2015, for more information. Realistically, nothing more can be done to speed up Maestro/eMaestro, so in the short term we’re stuck dealing with a slow system.

Jeppesen Crew Tracking Enterprise (JCTE)

However, the Company is set to roll out the new crew management system called Jeppesen Crew Tracking Enterprise (JCTE) this coming September 30^th. Management has advised the MEC that JCTE will be able to handle many more users than Maestro/eMaestro. You have already heard about JCTE recently from Inflight Crew Scheduling management. Your MEC hopes JCTE delivers as much as has been promised!

Start of the Open Time trial has become a “rolling delay”

The MEC and management agreed the trial period of twelve months from “initial implementation” referenced in Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) §12.F.10 [Exchange of Sequences: Open Time Trial: Trial Period] should begin when the system is fully functional. During negotiations, the trial was estimated to begin around August 2015, which is reflected in CBA Letter of Agreement 6 [Contract Implementation Schedule].

As a result of all the programming challenges associated with the new Open Time system, the start of the Open Time trial has become an unforeseen “rolling delay.” In our previous Open Time Trial update dated January 15, 2016, AFA Alaska communicated, “Based on the latest estimates, we are anticipating the Open Time trial to officially begin in the next month or so.” That estimate has proven to be too optimistic by several months.

Incorrect Open Time programming

The MEC is extremely disappointed that the new Open Time has been programmed incorrectly. The new Open Time has suffered from major programming glitches that were corrected as recently as just a few months ago. In fact, Open Time was initially programmed incorrectly with more favorable trading rules than negotiated. OT was left to run for several months with the more favorable rules starting last autumn, and then the system was reprogrammed with the negotiated trading rules a few months back.

Open Time still has one minor bug related to multiple trades even up to the present day. The MEC finds this completely unacceptable. We are pushing for management to install a programming patch that would fix the bug as soon as possible.

Programming limitations for Maestro/eMaestro and JCTE

Unfortunately, due to the complexities of programming and resource limitations, no additional changes beyond that possible patch can be made to Maestro/eMaestro. The MEC also knows that all the OT codes (TO, DD, CP and TX) are confusing to many and ideally we would like to condense all the codes into only two categories. However, any programming change requests made to the new system JCTE will not go live until February 2017 at the earliest—or later.

Open Time trial officially begins this month (May)

At this point, the MEC is not willing to wait any longer for conditions to improve prior to commencing the trial. Consequently, the Open Time trial will officially begin this month (May), and the MEC will be sending out monthly surveys regarding your opinion of the trial. The first round of surveys will be sent out very soon.

The MEC will review the survey results on a monthly basis for at least three to four months prior to determining a course of action.

Based on membership feedback the MEC will make a determination on the future of Open Time:

If the MEC determines to go “back to book,” reverting to the former Open Time system could take approximately one year. This is because the new JCTE crew management system would need to be reprogrammed with the rules for the former OT system. (It is currently being programmed with the new OT rules.)
If we do go “back to book,” AFA will start negotiating a new system as outlined in CBA 12.F.9 [Exchange of Sequences: Open Time Trial: Cancellation of Open Time Trial]. Implementation of a replacement OT system would likely take a minimum of nine months after reaching an agreement with management.

Other factors contributing to your frustration

The MEC and Scheduling Committee understand there are several other factors contributing to your frustration. We have heard you loud and clear that all the codes and the trading rules are confusing. In the short term, AFA Alaska is working on a “cheat sheet,” Open Time Trading with the Codes, to help you understand the codes and trading rules. In the long term, the MEC is advocating for combining all the codes into two categories as soon as can be programmed into JCTE.

Schedule flexibility is also negatively impacted by extremely high line averages in all domiciles. There are fewer Reserves on a comparative basis than in the past, and those Reserves are being highly utilized. Premium OT is being offered nearly every day. From the MEC’s perspective, Inflight appears obviously understaffed. Management has agreed to hire at least one more class this year in order to bring down the line averages, but that will take time.

Finally, the MEC has received a lot of feedback recently regarding dissatisfaction with the pairings; so stay tuned for more communication from us on that subject!

* * *

If you have any questions or concerns, contact your local officers (LEC officers: ANC 30 | SEA 19 | PDX 39 | LAX 18 | SAN 15) or Scheduling Committee members (local Scheduling Committee: ANC 30 | SEA 19 | PDX 39 | LAX 18 | SAN 15).

In Solidarity,

Your MEC – Jeffrey Peterson, Brian Palmer, Yvette Satterlee, Lisa Pinkston, Laura Masserant, Cathy Gwynn, Sandra Morrow, Stephen Couckuyt; LEC Presidents-elect Tim Green, Brice McGee; and MEC Scheduling Committee Chairperson Jake Jones

Special MEC Merger Meeting

Dissatisfaction with the pairings discussed during the May MEC Meeting at the BOD

Purpose of the JNC

Scope of the JNC

Duties of the JNC

Expectations/Qualifications

Compensation/Expenses

Application Process

Schedule of Events

Saturday, May 21

Sunday, May 22

Monday, May 23

Tuesday, May 24

Wednesday, May 25

BOD Meeting Agenda Items

MEC Meetings

Equality March and Bridge the Gap Picketing

Questions?

Open Time Trading with the Codes Quick Reference Guide

Survey completion information

Survey overview

Understanding of the Open Time trading codes

Understanding of the estimated time frame for making any programming changes to Open Time

Strong dissatisfaction with the Open Time Trial

Detailed survey results

Stay Informed

and

Be Involved!

AFA-CWA Council 19

Base Meeting

Beyond frustrated with Open Time

Speaking of Open Time slowing/hiccupping/freezing/crashing/et cetera…

Jeppesen Crew Tracking Enterprise (JCTE)

Start of the Open Time trial has become a “rolling delay”

Incorrect Open Time programming

Programming limitations for Maestro/eMaestro and JCTE

Open Time trial officially begins this month (May)

Other factors contributing to your frustration

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