Dear Flight Attendants,
AFA resumed mediation this week with Alaska Airlines management at the National Mediation Board (NMB) in Washington, DC. Management was represented by Shane Tackett, vice president of Labor Relations; Andy Schneider, vice president of Inflight Services; Elizabeth Ryan, managing director of Labor Relations-Air; Mike Link, manager of Inflight Labor & Work Performance; and Patrick Sundaresan, division controller for Air, Maintenance & Engineering. Ben Minicucci, chief operating officer (COO), also joined us on the first day. Victoria Gray returned as our federal mediator from the NMB.
AFA presented our opening proposal (AFA Alaska 2014 TA-2 Opening Proposal) and engaged in productive discussions. Management was receptive to some aspects of our proposal and the parties reached an agreement in concept on several items:
- Section 9 Junior Available,
- Section 11 Reserve,
- Section 12 Exchange of Sequences, and
- Section 23 Insurance Benefits.
The parties confirmed our August 25th-28th session, which is tentatively scheduled for San Francisco, CA. We also scheduled additional dates in early October and November. Unfortunately, our mediator had no availability in September.
The latest negotiations video update recapping this session has been posted.
What can you do between now and our August negotiations? Wear your RED AFA pin, stay informed and stay engaged. More information about upcoming solidarity events in July and August is at alaskamec.org/mobilization.
Looking for more information or have questions/concerns about negotiations? Visit the negotiations page of the AFA Alaska website, fill out a Negotiations Feedback Form or send the Negotiating Committee an email. Look under our signature line below for all the links!
In solidarity,
Your Negotiating Committee—MEC President Jeffrey Peterson, Kristy Stratton, Lisa Pinkston, Jake Jones, Christina Frees and AFA Senior Staff Negotiator Paula Mastrangelo
alaskamec.org/negotiations | negotiations@alaskamec.org | Negotiations Feedback Form