AFA Alaska

Representing the Flight Attendants of Alaska + Hawaiian

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Welcome to AFA…so what do I do now?

The National Mediation Board (NMB) issued its determination today that AFA is the collective bargaining representative for Virgin America Flight Attendants!  As mentioned in a previous communication, Virgin America Flight Attendants will be part of AFA Transitional Local Council 35, which will represent Flight Attendants from JFK, LAX, and SFO.  Council 35 will be part of the Alaska Airlines Master Executive Council.

Now that AFA is the representative for Virgin America Flight Attendants, it’s time to take the next steps and get connected, stay informed, and become an AFA member!

Next Steps

Get Connected

Stay connected with the latest news and information by signing up for AFA Alaska email communications at afanewsletters.org/subscribe.  On the sign up page, enter your personal email address (no work email, please) and choose Alaska Air C35 (VX).

Prefer to stay connected on social media?  You can find AFA Alaska on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.  Also be sure to like the AFA Council 35 page on Facebook!

Stay Informed

You can always find the most up-to-date information on the AFA Alaska website at http://afaalaska.org.  Add a bookmark or add it to your favorites for easy access.

If you’re an iOS device user, you can save our mobile website as a shortcut on your home screen and access it just like you would an app.  Just open Safari and type afaalask.org into the address bar.  Once there, follow the instructions on the pop-up to save the web app to your home screen.

If you’re not an iOS user, you can still access our mobile website using your favorite browser on the device of your choice.

Become a Member

One of the most important things to do now that Virgin America Flight Attendants are represented by AFA is so complete, sign, and submit an AFA membership application.  By submitting your membership application, you’ll be guaranteed the right to participate in AFA elections, vote on a tentative agreement, and hold committee positions and elected office.

As an AFA member, you won’t be required to pay dues until you vote on and approve a contract.

AFA Representatives Will Be Visiting Soon

Over the next several weeks, AFA Alaska representatives will be spending time in the Villages in SFO and LAX with information about AFA and to answer questions that you may have.  We’ll also be scheduling AFA representatives to visit JFK.  They’ll also have membership applications and AFA pins available.  More information will be available on the Council 35 Facebook page and the Council 35 page of the AFA Alaska website.

Questions?

If you have any questions, please send us an email at vx@afaalaska.org.

 

In Solidarity,

Your AFA Alaska MEC Officers – Jeffrey Peterson, Brian Palmer and Linda Christou

AFA Now Represents Virgin America Flight Attendants

AFA confirmed as the collective-bargaining representative for Virgin America Flight Attendants

The National Mediation Board (NMB) has confirmed AFA as the collective-bargaining representative for Virgin America InFlight Teammates (ITMs).* Effective immediately, AFA takes over representation of Virgin America Flight Attendants from our sisters and brothers in the Transport Workers Union of America (TWU). We are the first union to achieve consolidated representation in the merger between Alaska Airlines and Virgin America.

* Going forward, AFA will refer to Virgin America ITMs as “Flight Attendants” unless there is a need to distinguish between the two. This is in order to maintain consistency in the AFA family of over 50,000 Flight Attendants at 20 carriers.

Transitional Local Council 35 Virgin America Officers to be appointed very soon

The Master Executive Council (MEC) expects AFA International President Sara Nelson to appoint a Transitional President and Secretary for the newly formed AFA Transitional Local Council 35 Virgin America SFO-JFK-LAX very soon. Pursuant to the AFA Constitution & Bylaws Article III.A.2 [Local Councils and Local Executive Councils: Establishment of Transitional Local Councils for Newly Organized Carriers], President Nelson has been soliciting input from VX F/As for names of potential appointees. The deadline for submitting potential appointees ended this past Wednesday, April 11, 2017.

Each potential appointee must have received a minimum of two recommendations and signed a commitment to serve. (The commitment to serve statement was included in a linked electronic recommendation form that was distributed to Virgin America F/As via company email.) The appointed Transitional Officers will serve as Council 35 leadership for a period of approximately four to six months until elections can be held to fill those positions.

Click here for more information >

Compensation

AFA is aware that non-represented employees at Virgin America typically receive wage increases around this time of year. We are very concerned that VX Flight Attendants have not received a wage increase in several years, which currently places VX F/A pay at the bottom of the industry. Consequently, AFA and Alaska Airlines management have agreed to meet in order to discuss this subject at our earliest opportunity. Once appointed, the AFA Transitional Local Council 35 President will also represent VX F/As in those discussions.

Virgin America Flight Attendants: Sign Up to Get Involved!

Involvement is one of the key hallmarks of AFA.  As a member-driven Union, the more people who get involved, the better off we are. We are “Stronger Together, Better Together.” If any Virgin America (VX) Flight Attendants are interested in getting involved in AFA and Council 35, we want to know!  If you are a VX F/A, please take a few moments to complete the volunteer interest form, and let us know how you might be interested in getting involved.

Click here to access the Council 35 Involvement Interest Form (Virgin America only) >>

Vacancies for two Virgin America Merger Representatives and one Joint Negotiating Committee member will be posted soon

In the coming weeks, the Master Executive Council will be soliciting applications from Virgin America Flight Attendants to fill vacancies for two Merger Representatives to serve in the Seniority Merger Integration Committee and for one Joint Negotiating Committee member. The MEC will review applications and interview final candidates prior to filling vacancies.

 

For additional information regarding the duties of a Merger Representative in the Seniority Merger Integration Committee, click here >

 

For additional information regarding the duties of a Joint Negotiating Committee member, click here >

 

If you have any further questions, contact your LEC president; Virgin America F/As may email vx@afaalaska.org.

 

In Solidarity,

Your MEC – Jeffrey Peterson, Brian Palmer, Linda Christou, Lisa Pinkston, Laura Masserant, Cathy Gwynn, Tim Green and Brice McGee

Custom Uniform Safety Standards

Alaska Air Group management has been working with operational leaders, third-party safety consultants, labor leaders, workgroup and union representatives, and the uniform supplier (to be announced later) in order to develop a new safety standard for the upcoming custom uniform program. AFA is very pleased to report that management has made a commitment to certify the primary uniform pieces in the custom uniform to an industry-leading safety standard: the Standard 100 by OEKO-TEX®. (OEKO-TEX® is pronounced “eco tex” like “eco” in “eco-friendly” and “tex” like the first syllable in “Texas”.)

There may be a need and/or desire to source non-custom pieces from a third-party vendor in some instances, in which case the Company will first seek suppliers that adhere to the American Apparel and Footwear Association (AAFA) Restricted Substance List (RSL) or another safety standard of equal caliber. Based on all the information we have been given so far, AFA anticipates that the Flight Attendant custom uniform will be composed almost exclusively of pieces certified to the Standard 100 by OEKO-TEX®.

AFA and Alaska Airlines management had originally discussed the Standard 100 by OEKO-TEX® during our investigations into textile sourcing and manufacturing safety resulting from Flight Attendant health concerns with the TwinHill uniform. AFA pushed for adopting the Standard 100 by OEKO-TEX®, but management deemed the standard as too expensive to achieve at that time. By partnering with the custom uniform supplier, Alaska Airlines is now able to implement this robust safety standard more cost effectively than was previously possible.

Even with the Standard 100 by OEKO-TEX® certification, it is impossible to guarantee that all Flight Attendants will remain free from reactions to the custom uniform pieces. In fact, research indicates it is likely that five to ten percent will experience some form of dermal reaction as a result of cutting over to new uniform pieces. However, AFA appreciates that management has taken proactive steps to improve the safety of our uniforms and reduce the possibility of more serious health effects by adopting the Standard 100 by OEKO-TEX® and the AAFA RSL into our custom uniform program.

Based on behind the scenes progress so far, we are very hopeful the custom uniform program will be well received and the cutover in 2019 will go as smoothly as possible.

In Solidarity,

Your MEC – Jeffrey Peterson, Brian Palmer, Linda Christou, Lisa Pinkston, Laura Masserant, Cathy Gwynn, Tim Green, Brice McGee; AFA Uniform Committee Chairperson Bob Moore; and AFA ASHSC Chairperson Seth Heiple

Issues Accessing JCA Using Windows 10

AFA has been made aware of a technical glitch that is creating issues accessing JCA on computers running the Windows 10 operating system. If you are using a computer running Windows 10, only Internet Explorer will currently allow access to JCA—no other browsers will allow access to the system due to the glitch.

The browser icon on the desktop (the blue “E”) is the Windows Edge browser, one of the browsers that is not working.  Use the search field found in the menu bar or start menu to search for and open Internet Explorer.

Alaska Airlines IT has been advised of the issue and is working to restore normal access.  There is currently no ETA on a fix to the system.

Access to JCA using Apple operating systems (including the IMD) is unaffected.

In Solidarity,

Your MEC – Jeffrey Peterson, Brian Palmer, Linda Christou, Lisa Pinkston, Laura Masserant, Cathy Gwynn, Tim Green and Brice McGee

Important Information Regarding Open Time

A message from your AFA Scheduling Committee

In preparation for Open Time this Saturday, some changes to Crew Access have been made to help minimize the spinning propeller issue that occurred last month.

If you should encounter the spinning propeller, Jeppesen suggests that you continue to submit any additional trades, even if the propeller is still there. They are working on a permanent fix for this issue but want you to maximize the opportunity to manage your schedules in the meantime.

Reminders

  • Check your Published Roster for the most accurate roster information. Hamburger Menu > Reports > Reports on Demand > Published Roster
  • Print your pairing by clicking the blue pairing number in your Roster View
  • Flight Loads are now available approximately 5 days before your trip. To view Flight Loads. FA Website > Schedule & Bidding > Flight Loads
  • When picking up a SIP, verify your report time. Trips may show the report time as the same time as departure. You must report 1 hour before scheduled departure.
  • When using the Filter “Show only premium pay trips” it will show all the trips that had premium pay associated with them. For example, a FA picks up a premium pay trip, then Advertises it for Grab. It will show in the filtered trips using this Filter, but premium pay will NOT follow the sequence. Section 9.E.3.

How to Split/SIP a trip

In the example below, the Flight Attendant would like to Advertise SEA-DFW, DFW-SEA as a SIP for Grab.

1.  Add the trip to your Trade Cart
2.  Select Split activity
3.  Select the flight, in this case AS719 SLC-SEA, before the portion of the trip wanting to be sipped.

4.  Select After (In this case the F/A wants to sip the portion of the trip after SLC-SEA.)
5.  Select the trade option and complete the advertisement

You will see ½ of a green line next to your trip in your Roster View once your trip has been successfully advertised.

Please review the training video for additional information about Splitting a Trip. FA Website > Schedule & Bidding > Crew Access Help > Tutorial Videos & Guides

Recurrent Training

Recently, you may have seen the addition of FRS2 for recurrent training in Seattle. There is not a difference between FRS1 and FRS2. You may trade and pick up either one. So, if you are awarded a FRS1 and you want to trade into another date that has FRS2, your trade will be approved. You may also click on the grey triangle on the top right to see the list of flight attendants who will be attending that class.

Once dual recurrent trainings are offered in Seattle, FRS2 will be used to indicate an afternoon recurrent training.

Questions?

If you have any questions, please contact your Local Scheduling Committee.

Meet Our Pre-Merger Alaska Committee Chairperson & Representatives

This message is for pre-merger Alaska Flight Attendants We’re excited to introduce the next group of pre-merger Alaska MEC Committee Chairpersons and Representatives for the upcoming MEC Officer term. They’ll begin transitioning into their roles over the next few months and officially start their terms on January 1, 2026. Below, you’ll find brief biographies that […]

Meet Our Merged MEC Committee Chairpersons & Representatives

We’re excited to introduce our next group of newly elected merged MEC Committee Chairpersons, who will begin their roles on November 1. These leaders are dedicated to representing the interests of our Flight Attendants as they coordinate activities across the merged committees of both airlines. They’ll work closely with the Local Committee Chairpersons from all […]

Hotel Committee Meeting Recap – October 2025

On Monday, October 13, our AFA Local Hotel Committee Chairpersons met in person in Seattle to receive an update about current layover hotels and transportation providers and discuss concerns with management. Representing you at the meeting were Dori Marron (ANC), Jarod McNeill (SEA), Kelly Hepworth (PDX), Hilary Streem (SFO), Chris Cardenas (LAX), and Kanani Vallot […]

Pre-Merger Alaska MEC Committee Election Results

This message is for pre-merger Alaska Flight Attendants During this week’s MEC Meeting, our MEC held interviews for the next group of pre-merger Alaska MEC Committee positions to be elected for the upcoming MEC Officer term. We want to thank everyone who expressed interest in the available positions and their willingness to serve. After careful […]

Merged MEC Committee Chairperson Election Results

During this week’s MEC Meeting, our MEC held interviews for the next group of merged MEC Committee Chairpersons and Representatives. We want to thank everyone who expressed interest in the available positions and their willingness to serve. After careful consideration and deliberation, the following candidates have been elected: MEC Air Safety, Health, & Security Committee […]

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