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In This Edition

TA Thursday Update – July 11, 2024

Originally posted July 11, 2024

In case you missed it, make sure to catch up on this week’s TA Thursday Update published yesterday! This week’s update included:

  • Register Now For Virtual Tentative Agreement (TA) Roadshows
  • How Will The Updated Insurance Rates Work If The TA Is Ratified?
  • Stepping Through The Pay Scale
  • Behind The Numbers: Straight Pay Rate Increases
  • More About Boarding Pay
  • The Real Deal
  • Upcoming Events

Read More >

Register Now For Tentative Agreement (TA) Roadshows 

Originally posted July 12, 2024

Starting next week, our Negotiating Committee will be hitting the road for a series of roadshows to bring the details of the tentative agreement (TA) directly to you. Each roadshow will feature a presentation by the Negotiating Committee about the TA, followed by an interactive question-and-answer session. These sessions are your chance to ask questions and get all the information you need to make an informed decision when it’s time to cast your vote. 

Read More >

Next Week’s Events

Tuesday, July 16Virtual TA Roadshow
Wednesday, July 17Virtual TA Roadshow
Wednesday, July 17Quarterly Air Safety, Health, & Security Committee (ASHSC) Meeting
Thursday, July 18Virtual TA Roadshow

See the MEC Event Calendar >

Find Us on Social Media

You can find the most up-to-date official information on our AFA Alaska social media accounts.  Click below and follow so you can stay connected!

In This Edition

Tentative Agreement (TA) Summary and Information

Originally posted July 2, 2024

Our Negotiating Committee is currently cleaning up the full-text language of the TA for your review, but you can check out the TA Summary now on the negotiations website at contract2022.afaalaska.org/TA. The compensation table reflects the new TFP rates and contract anniversary raises, but it does not reflect all of the ways our pay would increase under the TA. For example, boarding pay is also included in the TA along with many other pay factors. We encourage you to dive into the full summary now and full text once it’s available. Join us at an upcoming Roadshow (schedule posted on the TA page of the negotiations website) for a chance to discuss and ask questions about the agreement.

Read More >

Shared on Social

The Real Deal

Want to know more about what’s in the TA? Check out our social media series, The Real Deal, for an easy-to-follow breakdown of some of the key highlights. Here are some of this week’s posts (click the graphic to see the full post):

Next Week’s Events

Thursday, July 11Alternate Dispute Resolution (ADR)

See the MEC Event Calendar >

Find Us on Social Media

You can find the most up-to-date official information on our AFA Alaska social media accounts.  Click below and follow so you can stay connected!

In This Edition

  • Scheduling Committee Meeting Recap – June 2024
  • Reserve Committee Meeting Recap – 2nd Quarter 2024
  • MEC Approves Tentative Agreement For Member Review And Ratification Vote
  • Shared on Social
  • Next Week’s Events

Scheduling Committee Meeting Recap – June 2024

Originally posted June 27, 2024

On June 25, our AFA Scheduling Committee Chairpersons met to discuss their ongoing work representing Flight Attendants’ interests in lineholder scheduling. The Committee met with management to receive updates and discuss issues and problems Flight Attendants face with scheduling, pairings, and bidding. Your Local Scheduling Committee is available to assist with any lineholder scheduling-related issues. Don’t hesitate to reach out for help!

Read More >

Reserve Committee Meeting Recap – 2nd Quarter 2024

Originally posted June 28, 2024

Our AFA Reserve Committee Chairpersons met on Thursday, June 13, to discuss their ongoing program of work to represent and advocate for our Reserve Flight Attendants. The Committee also met with management to review specific concerns that Flight Attendants brought forward. Your Local Reserve Committee is available to answer questions, clarify contractual language, or help resolve reserve-related issues. Please don’t hesitate to reach out!

Read More >

MEC Approves Tentative Agreement For Member Review And Ratification Vote

Originally posted June 28, 2024

Our Negotiating Committee recently presented the Master Executive Council (MEC) with the details of the Tentative Agreement (TA) that was reached with management last week. The MEC carefully reviewed the provisions of the TA and asked questions to clarify their understanding. After thorough consideration, the MEC has unanimously approved the TA to be sent out for a member ratification vote

Read More >

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So We Have A TA…What Happens Now?

Now that we have a tentative agreement (TA), the steps to membership ratification begin. The next step is for the MEC to review the TA at a meeting starting on Thursday, June 27. If you’re curious about the process, swipe through for more info. Keep an eye on the negotiations website and our AFA Alaska social media channels for specific timelines and dates as we move forward with each step. Stay tuned for more updates!

See The Post >

Next Week’s Events

Tuesday, July 2Scheduling Review Board (SRB)

See the MEC Event Calendar >

Find Us on Social Media

You can find the most up-to-date official information on our AFA Alaska social media accounts.  Click below and follow so you can stay connected!

Reserve Committee

  • Our AFA Reserve Committee Chairpersons met on Thursday, June 13, to discuss their ongoing program of work to represent and advocate for our Reserve Flight Attendants.
  • The Committee also met with management to review specific concerns that Flight Attendants brought forward.
  • Your Local Reserve Committee is available to answer questions, clarify contractual language, or help resolve reserve-related issues. Please don’t hesitate to reach out!

On Thursday, June 13, representatives from our AFA Local Reserve Committees met to discuss their ongoing work to advocate for Reserve Flight Attendants. Representing you at the meeting were Brandi Urban (ANC), Conner Gallagher (SEA), Anthony Eskander (PDX), Meghan Casey (SFO), Kanako Yamada (LAX), and Rebecca Garcia (SAN). Also present was MEC Reserve Committee Chairperson Julie Thornton and MEC Reserve Committee Vice Chairperson—New Hire & Probation Jarod McNeill. 

The committee met with the Director of Inflight Crew Scheduling Sara Cook and Crew Pay Process Manager Michelle Carcalean.

The committee is next scheduled to meet on Thursday, September 12.

Topics of Discussion

The committee reviewed a number of items both during internal AFA-only conversation and when meeting with management. Some items discussed include:

  • Issues & glitches with Crew Access that are affecting Reserve Flight Attendants.  Review of where known issues are documented and newly added/ fixed issues. 
  • Review of upcoming update to Crew Access software and associated fixes to current issues and other improvements prioritization for programming fixes.
  • Management staffing within Crew Scheduling.  Sara Cook hired two testers for CrewAccess that are dedicated to help Crew Scheduling test new updates prior to implementation and when a new issue is found attempting to figure out why and how to fix it. 
  • Review of reserve-related issues that have been escalated to the Scheduling Review Board (SRB) and Alternate Dispute Resolution (ADR) processes.
  • Review of reserve utilization statistics for the quarter, it is approximately 92.8% in all bases.  
  • Increase usage of LIMO in California bases and why
  • Ongoing concern with ISA coded trips and increase in no shows.  Please report these issues through the AFA Alaska Online Support Center so that AFA representatives can follow up with management. 

What The Committee Is Working On

  1. Assisting Probationary Flight Attendants Through the Reserve Buddy Program.   Answering questions from and providing support to probationary Flight Attendants through an expanded AFA Reserve Buddy program.
  2. Addressing Reserve Contractual Concerns. Researching and investigating reports from Reserve Flight Attendants and actively ensuring that management is compliant with our contract. 
  3. Developing Additional Tools & Resources for New Flight Attendants. Working to create a plan to provide more user friendly, easy-to-access resources about the CBA and other job-related information for new Flight Attendants.

We Want to Hear From You!

Do you have feedback for the committee, concerns you’d like to share, or items you’d like brought up with management? Please let us know! Your Local Reserve Committee is your voice to management. You can open a support request on the AFA Alaska Online Support Center or contact us directly using the information on the Reserve Committee page of the AFA Alaska website.

Scheduling Committee

  • On June 25, our AFA Scheduling Committee Chairpersons met to discuss their ongoing work representing Flight Attendants’ interests in lineholder scheduling.
  • The Committee met with management to receive updates and discuss issues and problems Flight Attendants face with scheduling, pairings, and bidding.
  • Your Local Scheduling Committee is available to assist with any lineholder scheduling-related issues. Don’t hesitate to reach out for help!

On Tuesday, June 25, our AFA Scheduling Committee Chairpersons/Representatives met to discuss their ongoing work to represent our Flight Attendants and push for improvements in our workplace. Representing you at the meeting were Heather Reier (ANC), Jaqui Bellenie (SFO),Rita Tillou (SEA), Russel Rivinius (PDX), Kamako Yamado (LAX), and Kitty Cohen (SAN). Also present were MEC Scheduling Committee Chairperson Jake Jones, MEC Scheduling Committee Vice Chairperson—Pairing Construction Karen Ferrell, and MEC Scheduling Committee Vice Chairperson—PBS Virginia Fritz. 

The committee met with Managing Director of Inflight Operations Michaela Littman, Managing Director of Inflight Operations & Crew Scheduling Allen Thieman, Director of Crew Staffing Nicholas Giles, Manager of Crew Planning Trisha Bennett, Senior Manager of Product Management Rick Mitchell, Director of Crew Scheduling Sara Cook, Manager of Crew Pay Debbie Bakke, and other management representatives from Crew Planning and Crew Scheduling.

The Committee is next scheduled to meet on Tuesday, July 23, 2024.

Topics of Discussion

The committee reviewed several topics during internal AFA-only conversations and when meeting with management. Some items discussed include:

  • In Portland, there is concern over the HNL layover construction for June extended to 3 days instead of 2. Local Scheduling Committee Chairperson plans reviewing July/August pairing construction to see if trips changed.
  • It was reported that there are Reserve issues with iPhones and privacy settings, specifically AT&T. Collaboration with MEC Reserve Committee and MEC Grievance Committee. As a line holder if you are experiencing issues, please open an AFA Online Support Center ticket.
  • Many of the bases said they don’t want to fly from domicile to Seattle and then work a Redeye flight. During pairing construction, AFA will review flights for duty start in Seattle to avoid other domiciles having to connect and fly these types of pairings.  The duty start would allow the redeye pairing to originate from the domicile it departs.  This could potentially impact the cost of the pairing solution. 
  • Potential missed calls for those with Wi-Fi calling turned on.
  • New Flight Attendants from the new hire classes are coming in and out of the ANC and there’s an increase in summer seasonal flying.
  • Unhappiness with trips and inconsistent redeye connections in Seattle.
  • Tickets being reassigned due to Flight Attendants not updating their profiles in the AFA Online Support Center.
  • The SFO base reports that they are seeing a high percentage of unproductive redeyes that are commutable. Would prefer to have more efficient flying or commutable on one end of the pairing.
  • Open Time failure and active grievance.
  • Revised vs reassignment language preference.
  • API failures with Flight Attendants and pilots causing hotel wait time issues.
  • The SEA base has several requests for nonstop PVR 2-day flights. The base is seeing reduction of 4k flying for the fall as management reduces the flying schedule. 
  • Busy July for PBS bidding with IT issues.
  • Bid awards for July using extra combinations to reduce seniority violations.
  • Bid protest for July considered normal.
  • Frustration with lack of updates from NavBlue and request for separation from pilots in meetings.
  • Future releases and installations for NavBlue, including fixes for pilots and Redhat 8 postponed. Both AFA and ALPA are tied to the program and this reduces our ability to install program updates for Flight Attendants. 
  • IT issues with password reset and plans to redirect their help.
  • There were several successful in person base sits around the system, including virtual sits and a new class virtual hour.
  • Bid awards viewing invitation and committee overview.
  • Selection of more expensive D run with the best soft lock ratio.
  • Advocacy for more productive trips and reduction in commutability.
  • Review and improvement of pairings in conjunction with sick calls.
  • Testing completed for JCTE 24.1.6 and trade analysis review.
  • Reduction in block hours for August, line average and reserve percentages.
  • Discussion on August pairings, trip distribution, and upcoming schedules.
  • We reviewed a PowerPoint with management tracking sick leave for lineholders and reserves, it shows year-over-year and month-over-month increases in absence rate.
  • Reserve utilization and sick call percentages per base.
  • Use of premium to reduce reserve utilization.
  • Thoughts on posting premium OT trips in advance and personal drops.
  • Increase in sick leave due to COVID in the Pacific Northwest. 
  • Ditching drills going into JCTE and being audited.

What The Committee Is Working On

  1. NavBlue. The PBS Subcommittee is seeking feedback on how they can improve their assistance to flight crews regarding bid awards and understanding results. They provided both in-person and virtual meetings for this purpose. The next in-person PBS Training is planned for June 
  2. Pairings Survey. There is a discussion of reviewing bidding data from NavBlue to see what kind of pairings Flight Attendants are interested in flying instead of sending out a survey. We will continue to review options. 
  3. Chime Communications. To reduce phone call volumes, Flight Attendants may soon be able to chat with Crew Scheduling via app/Microsoft Teams. The chat will be for Flight Attendant-initiated contact only. The function is currently in the early stages of development and still needs to be discussed with Labor Relations management and our MEC. Testing and implementation are continuing over the next few weeks. We are working on a letter of agreement for implementation, which is still pending review. 
  4. Crew Scheduling. A monthly review of PowerPoint presentations covered various aspects such as reserve utilization, detailed breakdowns, sick leave (week by week and year over year), premium, personal drops, and other relevant agenda items.
  5. Crew Planning. Like Crew Scheduling, there was a monthly review of PowerPoint presentations that covered subsequent month staffing, trip length distribution, Flight Attendant block hours, special initiatives (e.g., IROPs), commutability, and other relevant agenda items. Statistics around teaming continue to be reviewed. Crew Planning continues to maximize pairing construction and optimizing teaming strategies to minimize costs and ensure that crews (Flight Attendants) can stay together for multiple segments.
  6. ITS. Representatives from ITS joined the scheduling meeting to provide updates on NavBlue, Crew Access, internal systems, and Block2Block. These updates include performance reviews, data analysis, and information about future releases.

We Want to Hear From You!

Whether you have feedback for the Committee, concerns to share, or items you’d like brought up with management – don’t hesitate to let us know. Your Local Scheduling Committee is here to be your voice to management. You can easily open a support ticket on the AFA Alaska Online Support Center or directly contact us using the information provided on the Scheduling Committee page of the AFA Alaska website.

In This Edition

Crew Access Open Time Performance – June 16, 2024

Originally posted June 19, 2024

Flight Attendants are facing technical issues with Crew Access and Open Time trading/dropping, causing stress and frustration. Management plans to resolve these issues with server upgrades in June and July and will monitor the system closely during July Open Time. Our Scheduling Committee has requested a meeting with management to discuss long-term solutions for the ongoing Crew Access challenges.

Read More >

June 2024 MEC Meeting Recap

Originally posted June 20, 2024

Our AFA Alaska Master Executive Council (MEC) met this week on Monday, June 17, and Tuesday, June 18, to conduct their ongoing work to represent our Flight Attendants. The MEC was supposed to meet with executive management and union leaders from other company workgroups but chose to skip the meeting in support of our Negotiating Committee. The next Regular MEC Meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, July 9, and Wednesday, July 10.

Read More >

Supplemental Ditching Training

Originally posted June 20, 2024

AFA has not agreed to any extra-contractual terms for the newly announced supplemental ditching training; discussions with management just started. Many management decision-makers are away at contract negotiations, delaying progress toward any sort of agreement. Our AFA Committees are committed to advocating for your rights and will address unresolved issues through the contractual grievance process if necessary.

Read More >

Mediation Session 5

Originally posted June 21, 2024

After an intense week of negotiating at the National Mediation Board, and the clear deadline we set for the company, we have a Tentative Agreement (TA) for a record contract. Your actions over the last two years of bargaining, including gaining support from lawmakers for our right to strike, ensured we had the leverage to extract every last dollar from Alaska Airlines management. Over the next several days, both parties will work to clean up the contract language to present the full text of the TA to the Master Executive Council (MEC). The MEC then votes on release of the agreement for a full membership ratification, roadshows will be scheduled, and details will be released to Members. Stay tuned for updates!

Read More >

Shared on Social

Our Negotiating Committee Has Arrived In Washington DC

Originally posted June 17, 2024

Our Negotiating Committee has arrived in Washington, D.C., for the mediation session this week. Today is their internal prep session at AFA-CWA Headquarters, while the rest of the week will be at the National Mediation Board. 

See The Post >

Intense Negotiations At The NMB

Originally posted June 19, 2024

What do we want? CONTRACT. When do we want it? NOW.

Our AFA Alaska Negotiating Committee continued intense negotiations today, joined by AFA  International President Sara Nelson. The National Mediation Board (NMB) is keeping the parties at the table tonight.

See The Post >

Friday Added At The NMB

Originally posted June 20, 2024

The National Mediation Board is keeping AFA Alaska and Alaska Airlines in DC for an additional day. The parties will reconvene Friday morning.

See The Post >

Next Week’s Events

Monday, June 24CWA Presidents’ Meeting
Tuesday, June 25Monthly Scheduling Committee Meeting
Thursday, June 27Alternate Dispute Resolution (ADR)
Thursday, June 27 – Friday, June 28Special MEC Meeting

See the MEC Event Calendar >

Find Us on Social Media

You can find the most up-to-date official information on our AFA Alaska social media accounts.  Click below and follow so you can stay connected!

Grievance Committee

  • AFA has not agreed to any extra-contractual terms for the newly announced supplemental ditching training; discussions with management just started.
  • Many management decision-makers are away at contract negotiations, delaying progress toward any sort of agreement.
  • Our AFA Committees are committed to advocating for your rights and will address unresolved issues through the contractual grievance process if necessary.

AFA Representatives have recently been receiving a lot of questions about the supplemental ditching training announced by management. We want to make it clear that AFA has not agreed to any extra-contractual terms for this training. Management just began substantive discussions yesterday with our Grievance, Scheduling, Inflight Training, and Air Safety, Health, & Security Committees to work out the administrative and logistical details of the training, but those details are still undetermined. Progress has been slow because many of the primary management decision-makers are currently involved in contract negotiations in Washington, DC, this week and are unavailable to discuss the supplemental ditching training issues.

While the situation is not ideal, we must meet the regulatory training requirements and address the remaining details later. We don’t yet know what management intends to propose, nor do we know if we can successfully reach an agreement on which contractual provisions AFA believes apply. If we can’t agree, it may come down to addressing the unresolved provisions (particularly contract sections 30.C.3-5) through the contractual grievance process and arbitration afterward, which can be time-consuming.  

We have clearly communicated your concerns to management and have asked them to provide responses to numerous unanswered questions. Our AFA Committees are actively advocating for your contractual rights. We are dedicated to fighting for those rights, even if it takes time, rather than providing an instant fix.

Master Executive Council (MEC)

  • Our AFA Alaska Master Executive Council (MEC) met this week on Monday, June 17, and Tuesday, June 18, to conduct their ongoing work to represent our Flight Attendants.
  • The MEC was supposed to meet with executive management and union leaders from other company workgroups but chose to skip the meeting in support of our Negotiating Committee.
  • The next Regular MEC Meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, July 9, and Wednesday, July 10.

Our AFA Alaska Master Executive Council (MEC) held its regular meeting for June 2024 on Monday, June 17, and Tuesday, June 18. These meetings, required under the AFA Constitution & Bylaws, provide an important opportunity for the MEC to discuss and address issues and concerns affecting our Union and Members at the airline level. Your directly elected LEC President (or their designee) attends these meetings as your representative and votes on your behalf when decisions need to be made.

During the meeting, the MEC received updates from the MEC Officers, LEC Presidents, and Grievance Committee. Additionally, the MEC reviewed written reports submitted by other AFA MEC Committee Chairpersons detailing their current work and activities.

Meeting with Management

This month, our MEC was supposed to meet with company executive management and Union leaders from the other union-represented workgroups within the company. These meetings generally occur once every quarter to receive management updates and discuss issues and concerns faced by all employees. However, since we are entering another summer without a tentative agreement and in solidarity with our Negotiating Committee, the MEC decided to send a strong message by skipping the meeting.

Our absence spoke volumes: We won’t wait any longer for the contract we deserve. We stand firmly with our Negotiating Committee in their efforts to negotiate a deal that works for all Alaska Flight Attendants. If management doesn’t step up, we’re prepared to take the necessary actions under the Railway Labor Act.

Worldwide Flight Attendant Day of Action Debrief

Our MEC reviewed and discussed last week’s Worldwide Flight Attendant Day of Action informational picketing events. Alaska Flight Attendants from all six bases (including the SNA and ONT co-terminals) and several other airports nationwide participated in the events. These picketing events, along with our other awareness-building efforts and the strong support from Flight Attendants across the industry, are helping to bring more public attention to our collective contract fights. You can read more about the Worldwide Flight Attendant Day of Action by clicking here.

MEC EAP/Professional Standards Committee Vice Chairperson Interviews

During the meeting, our MEC interviewed candidates for the MEC Employee Assistance Program (EAP) / Professional Standards Committee Vice Chairperson position that was previously posted in April. The MEC EAP/Professional Standards Committee Vice Chairperson works in collaboration with the MEC EAP/Professional Standards Committee Chairperson to assist Members, their families, and partners with personal and work-related issues that may impact their health and well-being. Our MEC would like to thank all the candidates who applied and interviewed for the position.

After thorough consideration, Rex Hampton has been appointed to the position by the voting members of the MEC (LEC Presidents). Rex’s term will begin immediately and end on December 31, 2025.

System Board of Adjustment Interviews

Our MEC spent part of the meeting interviewing candidates for the System Board of Adjustment position that was previously posted in April. Members of the System Board of Adjustment are responsible for arbitrating any disputes or grievances that may arise under the terms of the Collective Bargaining Agreement between Alaska Airlines and its Flight Attendants. Our MEC would like to thank all the candidates who expressed a willingness to serve and interviewed for the positions.

After extensive discussion and thorough consideration, the voting members of the MEC (LEC Presidents) have re-appointed Sandra Morrow to the position. Sandra’s term of appointment will begin on July 1, 2024, and conclude on June 30, 2026.

Questions?

If you have any questions about this month’s Regular MEC Meeting, please get in touch with your LEC President.

Scheduling Committee

  • Flight Attendants are facing technical issues with Crew Access and Open Time trading/dropping, causing stress and frustration.
  • Management plans to resolve these issues with server upgrades in June and July and will monitor the system closely during July Open Time.
  • Our Scheduling Committee has requested a meeting with management to discuss long-term solutions for the ongoing Crew Access challenges.

Recently, many Flight Attendants have been experiencing technical issues with Crew Access and Open Time trading/dropping. These problems have been causing growing frustration and stress, both professionally and personally. Our Scheduling Committee acknowledges the significant impact and is committed to finding effective solutions while holding management accountable for maintaining systems that operate effectively and reliably.

Management has acknowledged the problems and expressed their commitment to tackling them head-on. As a first step, the JCTE servers are scheduled to undergo an upgrade. New firmware is set to be installed by June 24, followed by upgraded hardware by July 10, or possibly sooner. These enhancements are anticipated to enhance performance and overall system capacity significantly.

To ensure proactive oversight, the Information Technology Services (ITS) team will work closely with Jeppesen to monitor the JCTE platform during the upcoming Flight Attendant Open Time on July 16. This initiative is a step towards resolving the current issues and improving the operational experience for all Flight Attendants.

Furthermore, we expect management to deliver thorough and detailed updates on the measures taken to resolve the server load issues. Clear communication and a comprehensive breakdown of the implemented solutions and improvements are essential to ensure transparency. This will help our Scheduling Committee monitor progress and provide Flight Attendants with accurate, up-to-date information.

To address the more extensive and systemic ongoing challenges with Crew Access, our Scheduling Committee has formally requested a meeting with management to discuss the issues further. This meeting is a critical opportunity for dialogue and exploring concrete solutions to ensure an uninterrupted and contractually compliant experience for Flight Attendants.

Our Scheduling Committee is fully dedicated to actively addressing JCTE-related issues in order to restore operational normalcy and alleviate the challenges faced by Flight Attendants. We appreciate your continued patience and support throughout this process. If you have any questions, don’t hesitate to contact your Local Scheduling Committee.

Inflight Service Committee

Happy New Year from your Inflight Service Committee. 

This is the time of year to start thinking about the spring and summer months. The lead time required to make catering changes is typically 3 to 6 months. If you are currently flying a particular city pair and you regularly have product shortages such as Bloody Mary mix, Irish Cream, ginger ale, etc… now is the time to be reporting these shortages using B2B. The more reports that are submitted the more likely we will see changes. 

Membership Committee 

Over the past several months, the company has offered various staffing adjustment leaves.

Staffing adjustment leaves are unpaid leaves. Dues are owed for the first 90 days of an unpaid leave. Union dues are taken out of your 20th paycheck each month; missed dues deductions will need to be paid directly to AFA.

For example, if you took a staffing adjustment leave in October, you will likely owe November dues because your November 20th paycheck did not have enough money to deduct union dues.

If you are on unpaid leave and past your 90 days, you will be considered inactive. If you remain inactive, payroll will usually turn off your auto-deduction. Once you have returned to active  status, your auto-deduction should be turned back on. On occasion, corporate payroll has missed turning back on some auto-deductions. It is important that you check that your auto deduction is turned back on; otherwise, you might be accruing a dues balance after returning from an unpaid leave. You can monitor your deductions by looking at your monthly 20th paycheck pay statement in the after-tax deduction column titled union dues. If you find that dues aren’t being taken out of your paycheck please contact adam.clarey@afaalaska.org.

When returning from unpaid leave, there is a good chance you will owe union dues your first month back because there is not enough money on your 20th paycheck.

For those on paid leave (coordinating vacation and/or sick leave), you will owe dues each month.  Depending on how much you are coordinating and your other deductions, you might not have enough money on your 20th paycheck to cover union dues. You would need to pay AFA directly if there is not enough money on your 20th paycheck to cover union dues.

Online Payment

https://unionly.io/o/afacwa/dues

Payment Options

https://www.afacwa.org/payment_options

If you have questions, you can reach out to our Membership Chair and Council Secretary, Adam Clarey at adam.clarey@afaalaska.org.

Mobilization Committee

Your mobilization committee continues our work to mobilize our membership and support our negotiating committee. 

Our Picket event on Dec. 19 had almost 400 participants, and was paired with our Strike Vote Announcement. Strike Voting is now open, and ballots were sent on January. 3rd. Remember to vote by Feb. 13th. I recommend voting as soon as you get your ballot. It only takes a few minutes. 

Lastly, save the date for our Worldwide Flight Attendant Day of Action on Feb. 13. We will be picketing with Flight Attendants around the world as we collectively fight for fair and equitable contracts. More information to come on this.

We’re always looking for more Mobilization Volunteers. If you’re interested, sign up at https://contract2022.afaalaska.org/mobilization/volunteer/signup/

Personal Message from our Mobilization Chair:

I have been so proud and grateful to serve you as your Seattle Mobilization chair, and Vice Chair of the reserve committee. I will be transferring to SFO in the February bid month, so I need to step down from my roles within Council 19, but I am so grateful for the opportunity to serve our membership in SEA. I will continue to work with our newly appointed mobilization vice chair, Andrew Stinson until a replacement is found. If you are interested in the Mobilization Chair position, submit your resume to sea@afaalaska.org by Feb. 1 at 5 pm. Interviews will be held in March. I want to thank all of you for the amazing support I have received, and I look forward to finding more ways to serve our membership in SFO, and beyond. Please remember to vote, and remain active in our union. – Ian Haywood

Reserve Committee

With the holiday season behind us and staffing normalizing personal drops are being awarded at higher levels. Be aware that crew scheduling may call a reserve during their reserve availability period regarding a personal drop. In the past reserves have received no shows and unavailable for contact(s) for missing phone calls related to personal drops during their RAPs.

The holidays were busy and your local reserve committee received reports of over duty periods, cancellations and other operational issues which impacted reserve flights attendants. If something happened to you on a recent trip that you want your local reserve committee to look into further then please file a ticket at afaalaska.org and we will look into it.

Crew Access has been a source of many issues for reserve FAs lately. There is a particular issue we want reserve FAs to be aware of. When adding reserve days to an existing block that are the same reserve classification (i.e. AM/PM) they should retain their reserve classification (section 11.H.4). There is a known crew access issue which is incorrectly converting days to ER when adding days to existing blocks that span between bid periods. For example, you have an existing AM reserve block December 30-31 and you add 2 AM reserve days January 1-2 they should retain their AM classification. Crew Access will incorrectly convert days to ER and if this happens to you then please call crew scheduling and they will fix it. You may need to reference the crew access known issues list and/or ask to speak to a MOD. 

Fly safe and see you out there!

Scheduling Committee

FEBRUARY MONTH REMINDER :

Section 5 of the contract defines Month.  As a reminder it’s important to note for bidding and trading purposes January 31 and March 01 are added to February to create a 30 day period. 

FEBRUARY PBS BASE SITS

We will be conducting PBS Base Sits in SEA NSAT Village.  Visit us in person or online for PBS bidding assistance.  

  • Feb 6 and 8 SEA NSAT Village  6 am – 7 pm
  • Virtual Sits February 8 and 9  –  More information will be available on the NavBlue INFO page. 

SCHEDULING FLOWCHARTS

The Scheduling Committee has compiled Flowcharts to assist in helping navigate scheduling issues when flying. They can be found  on the AFA Website under Committees > Scheduling > Tools and Resources. 

Uniform Committee

If you were eligible for the new uniform allotment, you should have received it by now. Our next quarterly uniform meeting will be held on February 22, 2024.

Please continue to report any quality issues for garments to alaskaservice@unisyncgroup.com. It is helpful to include photos of defects and of the tag inside.

In Solidarity, 

Your Council 19 Committee Chairs and Officers

SEA Domicile Negotiations Update – February 2026

This message is for pre-merger Hawaiian Flight Attendants SEA Domicile May Vacancy Posting The company has posted vacancies for the SEA domicile. There are 121 permanent vacancies available, effective May 1, 2026 for the May bid month. Bids will close at 11:59 PM HT on Monday, February 16. Awards will be posted by 12:00 PM […]

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

On Wednesday, January 28, our AFA Local Air Safety, Health, & Security Committee (ASHSC) Chairpersons met to discuss their ongoing work to represent our Flight Attendants and push for improvements in our workplace. Representing you at the meeting were Deb Wallstrom (ANC), David Lake (SEA), Kalin Lackey (PDX), Brad Young (SFO & MEC ASHSC Vice […]

AFA Alaska + Hawaiian MEC Town Hall: Join Us Tuesday, March 3

This is your opportunity to connect, share, and be heard! Join us at an AFA Alaska + Hawaiian MEC Town Hall on Tuesday, March 3. Get the latest AFA news and connect directly with our MEC Officers. Bring your questions—this is your chance to get answers directly from AFA Representatives. The Details What: AFA Alaska + […]

Scheduling Committee Meeting Recap – January 2026

This message is for pre-merger Alaska Flight Attendants On Tuesday, January 27, our pre-merger Alaska AFA Scheduling Committee Chairpersons and Representatives met virtually to discuss their ongoing work to represent our Flight Attendants and push for improvements in our workplace. Representing you at the meeting were Heather Reier (ANC), Rita Tillou (SEA), Melodie Anderes (PDX), […]

Celebrating Black History Month

February 1 marks the start of Black History Month in the United States—a vibrant celebration with roots dating back to 1925, when acclaimed historian Carter G. Woodson first introduced “Negro History Week” to highlight the remarkable achievements of Black individuals. In 1976, President Gerald R. Ford expanded it to Black History Month, calling on all […]

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