Reserve Committee
- Our AFA Reserve Committee Chairpersons met on Thursday, December 9 to discuss their ongoing program of work to represent and advocate for our Reserve Flight Attendants.
- The Committee also met with management to review a number of specific concerns that were brought forward by Flight Attendants.
- Your Local Reserve Committee is available to answer questions, provide clarification, or help to resolve any reserve related issues. Please don’t hesitate to reach out!
On Thursday, December 9, representatives from our AFA Local Reserve Committees met to discuss their ongoing work to advocate for our Reserve Flight Attendants. Representing you at the meeting were Haley Hirsch (ANC), Conner Gallagher (SEA), Megan Zablan (PDX), Meg Casey & Camile Caldwell (SFO), Kanako Yamada (LAX), and Joe Coneglio (SAN). Also present were MEC Reserve Committee Chairperson Julie Thornton, MEC Reserve Committee Vice Chairperson—New Hire & Probation Jarod McNeill, and MEC Vice President Brian Palmer. The committee also met with Inflight Crew Scheduling Duty Manager Kiana Shaw from management.
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:
- Review of reserve utilization statistics for November 2021. Utilization rates are substantially higher than management’s goals. They are aware that they are working Reserve Flight Attendants hard.
- Clarification about how Crew Scheduling handles situations when a Flight Attendant calls in and indicates they are tired or exhausted.
- Review of reserve coverage levels. Coverage was increased for December 2021 and is expected to remain at the increased level through the first quarter of 2022.
- Issues and glitches with Crew Access that are affecting Reserve Flight Attendants.
- Clarification about how Airport Standby (ASPB) assignments are placed into Open Time (OT) for self-assignment and whether or not management is contractually compliant.
- Concerns that Crew Scheduling may be calling Reserve Flight Attendants more than once during the first 9 hours of domicile rest.
- Procedures used by Crew Scheduling to award Personal Drops to Reserve Flight Attendants.
- Review of 2022 initial training classes and how the Committee will be supporting our new hire Flight Attendants.
What The Committee Is Working On
- Pushing Management to Give Relief to Reserve Flight Attendants. Advocating for improvements in flexibility through reasonable Adequate Reserve Coverage (ARC) numbers to allow for shifting/repositioning and increased personal drops.
- Getting Ready for New Hire Flight Attendants. Preparing to support new hire F/As through presentations during initial training, participation in base orientation, and expanding the reserve buddy program.
- Addressing Reserve Contractual Concerns. Researching and investigating reports from Reserve Flight Attendants and actively ensuring that management is compliant with our contract.
We Want to Hear From You!
Do you have feedback for the committee, concerns you’d like to share, or items that you’d like brought up with management? Please let us know! Your Local Reserve Committee is your voice to management. You can find our contact information on the Reserve Committee page of the AFA Alaska website.