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    You are here: Home / Latest News / AFA Alaska News Now / March 2023 MEC Meeting Recap

    March 2023 MEC Meeting Recap

    March 9, 2023 17:00

    Master Executive Council (MEC)

    • Our AFA Alaska Master Executive Council (MEC) met this week on Monday, March 6, and Tuesday, March 7, to conduct their ongoing work to represent our Flight Attendants.
    • The MEC also met with executive management and a group of union leaders from other company workgroups to receive updates and discuss concerns affecting employees company-wide.
    • The next Regular MEC Meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, April 11, and Wednesday, April 12. Please don’t hesitate to contact your LEC President if you have any questions.

    The March 2023 Regular MEC Meeting was held this week on Monday, March 6, and Tuesday, March 7.  The meeting consisted of updates from our MEC Officers, LEC Presidents, Grievance Committee, and Scheduling Committee.  Our MEC also reviewed written reports submitted by other AFA MEC Committee Chairpersons about their current programs of work. 

    Meeting with Management

    As part of this meeting, the MEC met with company executive management and a group of union leaders from the other union-represented workgroups within the company.  The intent of these meetings, usually held once per quarter, is to receive updates from management and allow for a broader discussion of issues and concerns facing all company employees.  Some of the items that our MEC brought forward include the following:

    • Recent winter weather issues throughout the system. These weather issues resulted in a significant disruption to employees and operations in general. Management needs to anticipate problems, react sooner, and create an environment that recovers faster than before. There is also a need to resolve issues with throughput in Seattle during irregular operations and severe weather. Management states they are working on a plan to address these points.
    • Uptick in weight and balance restrictions. There has been a noticeable uptick recently in weight and balance restrictions in certain stations due to winds and other weather conditions. The restrictions are impacting non-rev and commuter travel as employees need to make plans based on information in FLY and cannot do so. Management needs to be more transparent when weight and balance restrictions are anticipated in specific cities or on particular flights and adjust inventory accordingly.
    • Lack of Positive Space Travel (PST) availability. Despite changes by management to how PST inventory is allocated, there needs to be more availability of PST seats for desirable destinations during vacation and other peak travel periods. The lack of availability devalues the benefit of PST for employees. Management indicated they would again review how PST inventory is allocated and internally discuss options for the current program.
    • Issues with transition to new leave/absence management vendor. Numerous employee reports have revealed that management’s transition to a new vendor for leave and absence management has been full of issues. Employees have reported not being paid correctly, a lack of responsiveness from the vendor, and other issues. Management says they are working with the vendor to address and resolve problems as they come up.

    Action on Agenda Items

    The MEC took action on two agenda items that were submitted in advance of the meeting.

    • An update to the MEC Policy & Procedure Manual was approved to expand the scope of the Inflight Training Committee to include Flight Attendants conducting Probationary Observation Flights and Initial Operating Experiences (IOEs).  The amended language can be found in Article VII.J [MEC Committees: Inflight Training Committee]
    • An updated version of the AFA Alaska Social Media Guidelines was approved.  The updated guidelines have been posted on the AFA Alaska website.

    Questions?

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

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    Filed Under: AFA Alaska News Now, Master Executive Council (MEC) Tagged With: MEC Meeting

    Comments

    1. Cheryl Gunderson says

      March 12, 2023 at 11:58

      Affecting employees company wide is the Parking issue….Was parking space ever addressed when hiring so many new employees?..With the N. lot at full capacity
      and the terminal full during peak times of the year….where are we to park???
      Could the company secure some additional space for employees ..off site..?

      In addition to offering hotel rooms the day before an assigned flight during winter ops…..perhaps 4tfp would also be in order for that day in a hotel .

      • Brian Palmer (MEC Vice President) says

        March 14, 2023 at 12:20

        The SEA LEC Officers have been in contact with base management about the ongoing conversations between the Company and the Port of Seattle about employee parking. In the Council 19 Winter Newsletter, the SEA LEC Officers reported that the Company is looking at contracting for a separate parking facility only for Alaska Airlines employees. The specifics and timing have not yet been worked out for proposed new parking facility.

        Also, thank you for your suggestion about winter ops hotels! I’ll pass your idea along to our Negotiating Committee for review.

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