Save the Date – Local Council Meeting
- November 4th from 11am – 1pm. Village meeting room TBA.
Please join us at the PDX Village for an opportunity to meet with local Council 39 committee chairs and officers.
Benefits and Leaves Update
Local Chairperson Ann LaRue
Open enrollment is coming up, starting on October 26th and ending November 16th. There are a few changes.
The company will be offering medical benefits for registered domestic partners. If you have a domestic partner and have not already enrolled as domestic partners, now is the time to get that done if you would like your partner to be covered on your medical benefits as you will have to provide proof that you are registered domestic partners.
Premiums for medical benefits and all optional benefits are remaining the same. There are no changes to optional benefits currently offered.
There will be no changes to dental or vision. Delta Dental and VSP remain our providers and coverage remain the same. There will be a mental health resources page on http://myalaskabenefits.com available for you to see all the different options to receive mental health care for yourself and family members. Additional benefits just for children will be an option available after January 1st through Brightline Behavioral Health program.
For those of you on the high deductible CC-PPO plan, there are new IRS maximums for your personal contributions to your HSA. HSA IRS maximum contributions increase to $3,850 employee only / $7,750 family. The company contribution to your HSA will not change.
The HSA company contribution will be deposited into your HSA twice a year on the first paycheck after January 1st and July 1st.
For all of you who have been frustrated with Matrix (the company’s medical leave and FMLA administrator) you’ll be thrilled to know that the company is changing vendors. Starting January 1st, all claims will be handled by The Hartford. For anyone on a medical leave or FMLA claim, your claim will be transferred from Matrix to The Hartford after January 1st, and you will be contacted by your new claims examiner.
An open enrollment mailer will be sent to your address on file on October 14th and the first follow up emails will be sent with links to the drop-in sessions on October 26th.
During open enrollment, drop-in sessions will also be posted on AlaskasWorld for any questions you might have. Ann LaRue is available to help answer any questions at 503-701-2722. We will update with times and dates if base sits are scheduled.
Supplemental benefits program for AFA Alaska members – Onsite enrollment at SEA and PDX in October. PDX onsite visits:
- We will have a benefit counselor onsite October 17—19
- We will enroll interested members and provide customer service to those already in the plans
Inflight Service Committee Update
Local Chairperson Todd Horn
- First class service, and stacking plates, dishes, and cutlery is necessary at the end of each meal service. Be sure to scrape all dishes and utilize either an empty drawer, or oven tin on an oven rack, in the used meal cart. This is a requirement for space availability and trash management. (see Service Standards, Ch. 4 – Meal Service – To Clear a Tray Table.) Many of our mid-con flights are double-catered and the downline crew may need the space emptied for trash stowage as well. Be sure to pull out garbage and recycling bags from the carts at the downline stations for collection by fleet service before you leave the aircraft.
- Do Not turn off the Airbus music player entirely (power off button) for the flight. Instead, pause the music. In the event of a cabin pressure loss, the player will activate and advise guests to don their oxygen mask with a automatic, pre-recorded message. If the unit is powered off, the announcement will not play.
- The 3rd cart has been temporarily postponed. If you continue to run out of supplies, and/or run out of room for trash, please report it via the catering feedback form on the Block2Block app on your IMD.
Reserve Update
Local Chairperson Anthony Eskander
A Personal Drop (PD) can be awarded at any point, including after your reserve availability (contactability) period begins. Because it could be unfair to grant a PD to a Reserve Flight Attendant who’s already sat several hours of reserve (no credit for the entire shift), through AFA’s alternative dispute resolution (ADR) process, it is agreed that it is a requirement for crew scheduling to make positive contact with the Reserve to accept a PD for a shift that has already begun. This requirement is met by calling the Reserve to offer the PD.
A Reserve can choose to decline the PD and finish the reserve availability period or accept the PD and be released for the day. In either case, a Reserve is responsible to answer the call from crew scheduling if it occurs during their reserve availability period. If a Reserve doesn’t return the call, applicable attendance points for the No Show/Unavailable for Contact can be assessed.
We are beginning to see PDs granted at a higher rate for Reserves, often after their contactability period begins. If you do not want a PD potentially awarded after your contactability period begins, you can have the PD request cancelled by calling crew scheduling at any time to remove it. Take note that once you accept a PD, it cannot be reversed.
Scheduling Update
Local Chairperson Melodie Anderes
• Modification of Section 10.S – Pre-Cancellation
AFA and management have recently come to an agreement to provide better clarity as to how pre-cancellations and reassignments are confirmed in advance of the first day of a sequence. The agreement expands existing pre-cancellation language and provides protections to Flight Attendants in how Crew Scheduling handles several additional situations. The new language goes into effect at midnight on Saturday, October 1, 2022. If you have any questions, please contact your Local Scheduling Committee for more information
• 2023 Vacation
First round of Vacation Bidding is posted. Second round opens on October 3rd and closes on October 18th. Second round vacation awards will be posted October 25th.
Vacation trading will begin for PDX on October 27th at 10am PT.
• Charter Flight Numbers
Occasionally we have Charter Flights in our PDX Bid Packet. The Charter Flights operate with flight numbers 9600-9699.
• Crew Access Known Issues
Please familiarize yourself with the Crew Access Known Issues. They can be found on the Scheduling & Bidding section under Crew Access Help.
• Holiday Flying
There is a reduction of flying on Thanksgiving Day. This will affect layovers and holiday pay. We will see more pairings with minimum pay rules over the holiday.
• 4 Position Pairings
AFA is asking crew planning for 4 position pairings. This is under review.
• PBS
The info page on the bidding site has great resources and tips. There are step-by-step videos. If you have questions, please reach out to our PBS Committee pbs.qa@alaskaair.com.
Disaster Relief Fund: Hurricane Ian Relief
From AFA International
President Biden has issued a disaster declaration for counties in Florida as the state recovers from the devastating impact of Hurricane Ian. The storm continues to make its way up the East Coast and more counties may be added as the destruction is assessed.
If you’ve been impacted by Ian, and your primary residence is in Florida, you are eligible for AFA Disaster Relief Funds. The application can be found at afacwa.org/DRF.
If you would like to help your flying partners with recovery, consider donating to the AFA Disaster Relief Fund. 100% of the fund’s contributions will go directly to impacted Flight Attendants in the form of cash assistance.
Support Delta Flight Attendants fighting for a Union!
From Team AFL-CIO
Thousands of Flight Attendants at Delta Air Lines are organizing for fair wages and better benefits. Management is spending millions of dollars trying to stop them. Will you support the Flight Attendants as they fight for a Union?
In recent years, Delta had nearly double the profits of any other airline in the industry. All thanks to the people behind those profits—Delta Flight Attendants.
Delta Flight Attendants are organizing with the Association of Flight Attendants-CWA (AFA-CWA) for a real voice on the job, for work rules management can’t just change on a whim, and for industry-leading compensation and work rules that match Flight Attendants’ contribution to the industry’s leading, most profitable airline.
So in 2019, Flight Attendants at Delta launched their organizing drive and have been fighting for a Union ever since. Even in the face of management’s union-busting.
If you’d like to support Delta Flight Attendants in their fight to form a Union, click here Join the Movement! | Delta AFA
