Local Council Meeting Reminder

Originally published October 4, 2022

November 4th, 2022

Time: 11am – 1pm 

PDX Airport, Village conference room 

Please join us for our bi-annual local Council meeting. Your LEC officers will be available to share up-to-date information pertaining to the Council and committees. We will also be joined, via conference call, by members of the Delta AFA organizing team.

Election Day is November 8th

Don’t forget to VOTE on November 8th. Next year will be critical for Flight Attendants. The FAA is up for reauthorization in 2023. We need members of Congress who will fight for our issues. We cannot sit this one out!

Voting is key to our credibility with Congress. Turning out in large numbers to vote is critically important to ensure our voice is heard. Voting — not how you vote but whether or not you exercise this constitutional right — is public record. When we’re able to say with credibility “Flight Attendants vote!” it increases our ability to move our issues.

Annual Benefits Enrollment

This year’s Annual Benefits Enrollment period is here, meaning now is the time to make changes to your 2023 benefit elections for you and your family. The deadline to enroll or make changes is November 16th, so be sure to act now before time runs out.

You can enroll at myalaskabenefits.com. REMEMBER: This is the only time you can make changes to your benefits without a qualifying life event (birth, marriage, etc.) so be sure to enroll before the November 16th deadline. 

AFA Monthly Membership Dues Obligations 

Coming out of the pandemic, and with the unprecedented number of leaves that were taken by Flight Attendants, we are seeing challenges and confusion around Union dues that are owed during that time, as well as how dues payments are owed during other leaves, such as maternity, personal injury, or long-term worker’s comp. 

If you are on a completely unpaid leave, you will still owe for the first three (3) months of that leave. Therefore, if you took a six-month COVID leave and you were not coordinating any vacation and/or sick leave to cover healthcare, life insurance, short term disability premiums, etc., then you would wind up owing $150 for those first three months. After that, you are not considered an “active” Flight Attendant and dues obligations are suspended until you return to active status.  

If you are on a leave of any kind and you coordinate sick leave and/or vacation in any given months, you are responsible for your dues for those months (“dues obligated”) because you are on payroll and considered an active Flight Attendant. Even if you don’t receive any net pay, due to insurance premiums and other voluntary deductions coming out of your gross pay, you are still dues obligated for those months. Basically, if you are benefiting from an AFA contract financially, you owe dues.

We are also seeing an increase in Flight Attendants who are not working enough TFP in each month to cover all deductions and dues. Many Flight Attendants are dropping to minimal flying and not having enough net pay (after taxes and insurance premiums, etc.) to cover their dues obligation for the month. In these cases, dues must be paid directly to International.   

How does this impact you?

We have a significant number of Flight Attendants who are currently in arrears and in bad standing. Members in bad standing will not have their votes counted in any elections, including voting on a new contract (tentative agreement.) You must be in good standing to have your vote counted. 

Please see Section 26 of the JCBA for more information regarding dues and membership standing. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to reach out to any LEC officer or the AFA International membership services department at Contact Membership Services – Association of Flight Attendants-CWA (afacwa.org)

To make an online payment to AFA, click AFA-CWA Online Dues Payment 

Stronger Together, Better Together: Join the Delta AFA Campaign 

What happens at Delta matters for all of us. Delta Air Lines has undercut our careers by billions of dollars, spoken in place of Flight Attendants on Capitol Hill and, as globalization speeds up, no contract for Flight Attendants at Delta also jeopardizes job security for all of us. Delta CEO Ed Bastian wouldn’t do his job without a contract to protect him and his interests, yet the airline he runs spends tens of millions of dollars to deny Flight Attendants the same rights.

Undercutting our worth and standing at Delta ultimately means Delta is stealing from all of us. But we can change that by supporting Delta Flight Attendants in their efforts to gain AFA representation and the means to negotiate a contract. The only way to push our careers forward is through strength in numbers and continuing to set the highest standards at every airline. 

You can do a lot to help our flying partners at Delta. Sign up to be a supporter, connect us with a Delta Flight Attendant you know, learn more about their campaign, and get tools to help organize.

Council 39 is joining the campaign. Show your support and help Delta Flight Attendants secure their Union! Sign up now >

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 3^rd 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

Modification of Section 10.S – Pre-Cancellations

• 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

Important Dates

September   1:  Vacation Bidding Round 1 Begins

September 19:  Vacation Bidding Round 1 Closes

September 26:  Vacation Bidding Round 1 Awards post

September 30:  ** Q3 CBT Due **

AFA Employee Assistance Program (EAP) Committee Appointments

Linda Gunselman

Linda has been a Flight Attendant with Alaska Airlines for 24 years, the majority of that time in the Portland base. She has a Bachelor’s degree in Management and Organizational Leadership from George Fox University and an Investigator degree from the Academy of Legal Investigators. Additionally, she has had extensive training in personal development as well as case advocacy through the CASA program (court appointed special advocate.)  

Born and raised in Oregon, Linda spends most of her free time with family and friends. She can regularly be found following her youngest daughter around to cheer events or volunteering with her cheer program, school or Rose Festival. Linda has been married for 17 years and lives in West Linn. She has three children, two grandchildren, a Cavalier King Charles, Dexter and cat, Sasha.

“With all the new obstacles we are faced with today, I understand how those things can trigger challenges in our lives. One of my strengths is the ability to look at the big picture while addressing the smaller things that can build up and be hard on us. I look forward to being able to assist my fellow Flight Attendants as an EAP rep!” – Linda 

Barb Moynier

After graduating from Weber State University with an Associate’s degree in general studies, Barb moved to Oregon in 1991. She started her flying career with SkyWest Airlines, and then joined Alaska Airlines in 1997.

Previously, Barb served on the AFA Air Safety, Health, & Security Committee as both MEC & local PDX LEC chairperson. While on the committee she worked the ETOPS Certification flight and served as an ASAP ERC (event review committee) alternate.

When not playing tour guide on work layovers, Barb enjoys volunteering for many non-profits, hiking, spending time on the river Dragon boating/kayaking, or just spending time in the great outdoors. Some may also consider Barb to be a soccer fan(atic) and she has been spotted at many Portland Timbers and Thorns matches!

Crystal Schrader

Crystal was born and raised in Oregon. At the age of 20, after being in nursing school and realizing it wasn’t for her, she applied to be a Flight Attendant on her 21st birthday. Having been flying for over 15 years now, she feels the lifestyle, friendships, and community the job has brought her is unmatched.Crystal is excited to be joining the EAP committee so she can give back to all of her fellow Flight Attendants who have supported her all these years. When she isn’t flying, you will find her teaching spin classes, riding bikes with her nine-year-old son, or line dancing!

“I feel peer to peer support is so important in our line of work and am so honored to be a part of such an amazing committee. Our work group is made up of some of the best humans and I look forward to working with all of you!” – Crystal

Please join us in welcoming our newest committee members!

Section 6 Negotiations 

September is here, and Section 6 Negotiations under the Railway Labor Act (RLA) for Alaska Airlines’ Flight Attendants are scheduled to formally begin! Thank you everyone for sending the Negotiations Committee your ideas and for filling out the survey. Member input is invaluable and guides the committee to prioritize needs. Please bookmark the Negotiations subsite, which can be found on the AFA Alaska website, to stay updated on the progress of negotiations.  

Council 39 is looking for Mobilization Volunteers to support Section 6 Negotiations in PDX.  Please fill out the Mobilization Volunteer Expression of Interest form and reach out to Ahnawake Kriese, our local Mobilization Committee chairperson, at ahnawake.kriese@afalaska.org to participate in events.

No Stock Buybacks in Aviation Until Problems are Fixed!

from AFA International

COVID relief legislation temporarily prohibited airlines from using stock buybacks that enrich executives and big investors on the backs of workers and consumers. But those prohibitions end on September 30. Now is not the time to start sending cash to Wall Street when the airlines can’t yet meet public demand or manage effectively through operational challenges. Airline workers have had contract negotiations on hold for years – delaying raises and improving working conditions needed to keep skilled workers on the job and attract new applicants.

We call on all airline CEOs to extend the COVID relief ban on stock buybacks until:

• operational meltdowns are not the norm
• staffing and flight schedules are aligned to support public demand
• labor contract negotiations are concluded

Stabilizing the industry must be CEOs #1 priority. Not $1 in stock buybacks until this is achieved.  Join the fight and take action by signing the petition.

Participation Request: Human Rights and Uniform Surveys

from AFA International

The Human Rights and Uniform Committees want to hear more from Flight Attendants! To better know what Flight Attendants, need and what can be done to fight for FA rights, please take two important surveys:

Human Rights and Equity Committee Survey

Uniform and Gender Expression Survey

Labor Day message

excerpt from CWA President Christopher Shelton

“As we continue to organize for transformational change, let us believe in ourselves, believe in one another, and have complete faith in the fact that when we come together and build true solidarity, there is no issue too big, no corporation too powerful, no challenge too tough, no goal too high that we cannot achieve.

When we fight, we win. Happy Labor Day.”

In Solidarity,

Steve, Krystle and Bethany

Our Negotiations Survey Is Now Open

The survey is open now and will close on Friday, August 19^th at 12 PM (noon) Pacific Time.  

Click here for the Contract 2022 negotiations survey >

If any Flight Attendant requires technical support for the negotiations survey, then click here.

This survey provides each of you the chance to be heard.  Let’s encourage one another to participate.  Thank you for your input as we prepare for Contract 2022!

Mobilization Volunteers for Upcoming Negotiations 

September mobilization event planned for the 13^th

As we get closer to the start of negotiations there will be various events planned. If you are interested in becoming a Mobilization Volunteer and assisting with these events, please take a few moments and review the mobilization volunteer page:  https://contract2022.afaalaska.org/mobilization/volunteer/ 

Always feel free to reach out to our PDX LEC Mobilization Chair, Ahnawake Kriese at ahnawake.kriese@afaalaska.org with any questions. 

PBS Bidding Reminders 

Although NAVBLUE ClassBid (the old PBS bidding interface) has officially been retired, resources are still available for Flight Attendants who need help with the newer interface, WebApp. Your login and password remain the same.  Bookmark https://asapbs.navblue.aero/webapp  

Available WebApp Training Resources 

•  WebApp Program Guide (AAG SSO Required)
•  Basic Line Bidding Video

•  WebApp Tutorial Video 
•  Basic Reserve Bidding Video
•  Additional WebApp Videos

Help Your Flying Partners Recover from Kentucky Floods

From AFA International

FEMA has issued a Major Disaster Declaration for several Kentucky counties to aid local recovery efforts in the areas affected by severe storms, flooding, landslides and mudslides beginning July 26, 2022, and continuing. If you would like to apply for AFA-CWA Disaster Relief Funds, download the Disaster Relief Fund Application >

AFA Employee Assistance Program (EAP) is always available to Flight Attendants regardless of status. EAP is completely confidential. If you would like to contact AFA EAP, please call: 1-800-424-2406

In Unity,

Steve, Krystle and Bethany