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Council 35 News – January 2022

Important Dates

  • Jan 31:Temporary NavBlue Outage at 06:00 PST for 2 Hours for Programming Update
  • Feb 5-9: PBS Base Sits SFO Village
  • Feb 10: ACT CBT Due

SFO Employee COVID Testing

Information provided by FlySFO

As a result of new CA State legislation, one of SFO’s COVID-19 testing sites will now accept insurance (including Kaiser) and has set up a dedicated Employee Testing portal for all Airport workers. Links to the portal for employee registration at this site offering molecular testing is below. Advance registration is required via the Employee Portal. Employees who are symptomatic or are known to be in close contact with someone who has tested positive for COVID-19 should use Worksite Labs if possible.

Location: Adjacent to the Long-Term Parking Lot and Cell Phone Waiting Lot by San Bruno Avenue

Testing Offered: Drive-Thru Only, RT-PCR with results in 12 or 24 hours

Employee Testing Hours: Daily 0700-1900 

Note: Operating hours and location are subject to change. 


Sunsetting of NavBlue Classbid After the March 5-12, 2002 Bid Period

by Virginia Fritz, Scheduling Committee Chair

NavBlue is sunsetting the old Classbid interface and FAs will need to use the updated WebApp interface for the March 5-12 bid period. Base Sits for SFO are scheduled on the dates below, and will be held in the SFO Village.  

  • Feb 5th 0900-1700
  • Feb 6th 1000-1800
  • Feb 7th 0700-1800
  • Feb 8th 0700-1700
  • Feb 9th 0900-1700 

Representatives from our Scheduling, Benefits, and Reserve committees will be on hand to assist and answer any questions. If you are unable to attend any of these sessions, please contact pbs.qa@alaskaair.com for assistance. WebApp virtual training dates are expected to be announced next month.

To get the most out of your time with a trainer at a Base Sit, you should have some familiarity with WebApp. If you have not already done so, please review the links below.  We strongly suggest beginning with the WebApp Tutorial.

Pairing Update for March 2022

by Virginia Fritz, Scheduling Committee Chair, PBS Subcommittee Member

The company has been trying to find ways to mitigate their operational risk of cancellations due to crew staffing shortages. They have found that the average sick call on a 4 day can take 2 or 3 reserve flight attendants to staff because of reserve legalities and days-on availability. This has led the company to significantly reduce 4 days in all bases for March. 

We have let crew planning know that we are very unhappy with this as it relates to the SFO base, and stressed that the quality of pairings is an issue, not quantity. If you have any feedback please reach out to sfo.scheduling@afaalaska.org so that we can relay any feedback to management.

Many in our base rely on longer trips. There are some tips to try and create your own longer pairings should you want to attempt it. You can attach one trip to another by adding a base turn (JCBA 8.T) to the beginning or end of another trip. A base turn isn’t necessarily a ‘turn’ but is “two (2) sequences combined in the same duty period that contain no less than one hour and forty-five minutes (1:45) block-to-block between the last flight of the previous sequence and the first flight of the subsequent sequence. The scheduled ‘base turn duty period’ cannot exceed fourteen (14) hours on duty according to CFRs.” Additionally, some trips have a SIP (JCBA 12.G),(a Sequence Interruption Point [SIP] will be any arrival of the aircraft at the Sequence Home Domicile). You can pick up a trip out of open time that in its entirety may not be legal to add, but with a SIP in base could create a legal combination. With many of the pairings we have, these tools may not always be applicable but we wanted to make sure that this information was available to you should you want and be able to use it.

Inflight Service Committee (ISC) Reminders

by Raymond Ramirez, ISC Chair

Create Success

Please help your fellow crew members by returning items to their originally catered galley positions.

Current Substitutions

Canned OJ replaces boxes-please pour.  SEA will cater Fruit & Cheese with 2 slices each of cheddar and Beechers due to a shortage of Brie cheese.          

F/A Feedback

Your comments have brought back mixer drawers to the FC beverage cart–coming March 02.  Current focus: carafes and lids are missing on many flights so please use B2B to report. THANK YOU!

Service

Feb 07, will see the reinstatement of many service items.  This service increase will be monitored and adjusted as necessary in partnership with AFA leadership.  Please reach out to your AFA SFO Inflight Service Committee, Raymond Ramirez (chair), Matt Voges and Renee Waggener with your service comments. 

Grievance Summary 2021

The following chart summarizes grievances filed for SFO for the year 2021.  This does not represent all of the performance meetings (investigations) that occurred and mitigated disciplines from Grievance Reps with management.  These numbers strictly represent grievances filed after discipline had been issued.  Of grievances filed, 3 of them were mitigated through the grievance process which resulted in either disciplines reduced and/or dropped.

ViolationCases% Total
Appearance of Sleeping12%
Intentional Flying with COVID12%
Breaking Quarantine/Insubordination12%
Lost IMD12%
Mask Non-compliance12%
Comping Non-Revs12%
Theft from Aircraft12%
Uniform12%
Last Chance Agreement12%
12+ Points12%
Reserve Out of Base24%
Late to Plane/Delay/Missing Required Item611%
CBT Missed Deadline1426%
Commuter Policy2139%
Total Grievances54100%

Calling in Sick and Wellness Calls

As everyone knows, thanks to the many reminders from management, sick leave usage is at an all time high.  Considering there’s a world-wide pandemic occurring this is not surprising.  One way management has taken steps to attempt to curb sick leave usage is to carefully monitor sick calls.  Many of the “suspect” cases are brought to the performance team for investigation from Crew Scheduling.  When an FA calls in sick and offers more information than what is needed, this often will trigger a “red flag” and get passed along for an investigation.  Best practice is to say only what is necessary to crew scheduling when calling in to report an absence.  “Hi this is FA (name)  Peoplesoft number (1234567) calling in sick for (trip number or reserve day).”  Nothing more is needed.  If schedulers are asking for more information, you are not required to divulge any health information.  

The same guidance is also true for Wellness calls.  Management has a process in place to follow up with Flight Attendants when they reach certain absence point levels.  Normally each discipline level triggers a wellness call and/or email from base supervisors. Wellness calls with management do not require a response, however it is recommended that the FA provide a confirmation of the message.  In recent investigations with FAs with high point levels, one of the questions from the performance supervisor is “did you receive the wellness calls from base leadership?  And did you respond?”  Best practice would be to respond via email only to any wellness calls and/or emails to avoid having a conversation with management without Union representation.

Member Question: How to use sick family

Flight Attendants can use sick leave to tend to a serious or emergency health condition of a family member.  If you report sick for a qualified family member and do not have enough sick leave to cover the entire sequence or reserve day(s), the absence(s) will be converted to a Management Drop and attendance points will be assessed at a half-point per day. To see your sick leave balance log into Rainmaker for the most current balance. If you need time away from work to care for a sick family member and you do not have sufficient sick leave available, contact an Inflight Supervisor to request a Management Drop. For more information please review Bulletin 2021-0059.

Membership Links for Payment or Personal Contact Updates

by James Ikehara, Secretary and Membership Committee Chair

If you are coming back from a leave of absence and need to catch up on dues payments, this link will take you directly to AFA’s Membership Services website to schedule an on-line payment. Should you need to update your personal contact information (e.g., address, phone number, email, etc.), use this link.

Fly safe and stay healthy!

Melissa, James and Brad

Melissa Osborne, LEC President •  Melissa.osborne@afaalaska.org • 415-275-1322
James Ikehara, LEC Secretary •  James.ikehara@afaalaska.org  • 415-289-9011
Bradley Young, Council Representative • Bradley.young@afaalaska.org • 916-508-3503

Council 35 News – May 2020

Upcoming Dates to Remember:

  • July 30/60-day SAL bidding closes:  June 1
  • Request to cancel SAL for Life Insurance deadline:  June 2 (more info below)
  • August PBS Bidding opens:  June 5 (back to normal schedule) 
  • Q1/Q2 CBT deadline:  June 30

Trending Discipline

Sick Leave Abuse

Although many Flight Attendants are on some sort of leave, there still seems to be a trend with sick leave abuse investigations. When calling in sick, whether protected under FMLA or normal sick, the company’s expectation is that the Flight Attendant is taking the time to recover from an illness which is preventing them from being able to work.  If evidence is discovered that shows a Flight Attendant using sick leave that doesn’t appear to be recovering, the company will investigate. Recent investigations have included travel audits, scheduling requests and social media posts that the company believes may contradict a Flight Attendant’s alleged sick status.  From the company’s perspective, calling in sick for any other reason than sick, is considered time card fraud.  In all cases, the investigations concluded in termination when proof of illness is not substantiated by evidence (i.e. hospital/doctor/medical receipts) and when conflicting evidence of apparent wellness is presented.  

Reserve Issues

With new reserves on the roster, performance management is also focused on reserve compliance. Some of the trends include commuting into base after RAP begins, or leaving base early before RAP is completed. Reserve F/As not available in base for their reserve availability period (RAP) have received discipline, even on first offense.  Just one occurrence can lead to discharge. Any Reserve F/A interested in extra support or guidance, please be sure to reach out to the SFO Reserve Committee.  The committee has recently re-opened the Reserve Buddy program and is accepting requests to have an SFO Buddy assigned for help.

CBTs Due Soon

The Q1 and Q2 CBTs have been published to the Learn App (replaces Cornerstone) on the IMD. Both CBTs are due 6/30/20.

  • Q1 CBT:  Uniforms and 9Max
  • Q2 CBT:  Minimum Crew, CD-0 Cabin Management, CARES Restraint and Introduction to Threat and Error Management 

Air Safety, Health & Security Committee Update

by Brad Young, ASHSC Chair and Council Representative

Masks

SFO continues to be stocked with surgical, light blue and dark blue (adjustable) facial masks.   A third type of fabric mask will start testing next week and will be adjustable around the ears (the loop) for further comfort and better fit.  Your ASHSC and Inflight Service Committee (ISC) members will be conducting wear and fit tests. Distribution of masks occurs in the SFO Village by supervisors from 0500-1500 daily and after hours by CSA supervisors.  Flight Attendants will receive two (2) masks each and must sign for them.  F/As may also email SFO supervisors to coordinate pick-up through the V-file system.

Onboard Sanitizing Supplies

All aircraft should have 16oz bottles of alcohol-based sanitizer onboard for use when soap and water aren’t readily accessible. Onboard Antiseptic Wipes (Clean-4-Sure) are provisioned on the A/C to wipe down IMDs, A/C surfaces, interphone, and demo kit contents. When using the IMD and interphone, avoid openings such as the earpiece and mouthpiece, as sanitizing liquid may enter and cause damage. 

IMPORTANT: Please fill out an Irregularity/ASAP Report if the sanitizing supplies are not available or insufficient for flight.  This will ensure the company provides the necessary tools to work in a safe and healthy workplace.

Social Distancing Inflight

AFA has worked closely with the company to help increase social distancing for F/As, which resulted in a temporary procedure change to allow F/As to sit in a guest seat during the cruise phase of flight. This policy is for F/As who are working a flight and on duty, however does not apply to F/As who are deadheading or on a crew rest break (HNL turn flight). While in a passenger seat, F/As must adhere to PED/IMD policy.  As a reminder, this allowance is only applicable during the cruise phase of flight therefore F/As are expected to be in assigned jumpseat locations for taxi, takeoff, and landing. 

First Virtual Membership Meeting a Success!

Thank you everyone for attending the first Council 35 Virtual Meeting on May 19!  The agenda for this meeting was to discuss the AFA Proposed 2020 Budget.  The following day on May 20, a Special Meeting of the AFA Board of Directors took place, at which an interim budget was approved for fiscal year 2020-2021. This was also a videoconference meeting and AFA’s first ever virtual BOD Meeting. The AFA International Office is currently updating the relevant documentation and will publish for review by members in the near future. The success of these meetings using new technology will provide councils with the opportunity to host more meetings in the future to reach members with valuable news and information happening in the Union. 

Life Insurance While on SAL

Flight Attendants on Staffing Adjustment Leave (SAL) lose their company-sponsored life insurance after the first partial or full bid month on SAL. This is consistent with past practice, however the current insurance company is processing the cancellations faster than in the past, which is causing a burden to some Flight Attendants. In response, the company made the decision to offer a one-time opportunity for F/As to cancel their SAL beginning the month of July. To cancel and take advantage of this offer, F/As need to email Inflight Crew Planning no later than 1159pm (PST) Tuesday, June 2. Reference Bulletin Bundle #2020-0051 for additional information.

Recurrent 2020

It’s unfortunate, but even this late in the year we are still encountering challenges with Recurrent (RT) 2020. A recent training audit exposed administrative errors that have resulted in Flight Attendants de-qualing and returning for additional training. Your Council 35 officers understand how frustrating the RT program has been this year and empathize with F/As that are on the receiving-end of the disagreeable consequences.  Be assured that AFA will continue to advocate for a fair resolution to these issues.   

Membership Dues While on Leave

by James Ikehara, Secretary

As a reminder, Article II.C.1.b of the AFA Constitution & Bylaws require that AFA dues continue to be paid during any leave of absence less than 90 days.  If you currently pay your dues through payroll deduction, dues payments will continue to be deducted as long as you continue to receive a paycheck with sufficient funds for all other payroll deductions plus your AFA dues.  If you are no longer receiving a paycheck or your paycheck does not cover all of your payroll deductions, AFA dues will not be deducted and you will instead receive an invoice from AFA International Membership Services.

Payment Options

If you receive an invoice or statement indicating that you owe AFA dues, payment can be made in one of two ways:

  • Online by credit card here.
  • By mailing a check directly to AFA International Membership Services

More information about payment options can be found on the payment options page of the membership services section of the AFA International website.  This page also contains information about payment plan options if you have a past due account and are unable to pay your entire balance at once.  Should you need further information about the status of your account, you can use this link and a representative from AFA International’s Membership Services department will be able to assist. 

Updating Personal Information
You can update your contact information (street address, phone number, email address, last name) with this AFA link.

How do I contact Council 35 Officers?

Using a personal email address, the preferred methods of contact are:

  • Open an Online Support Request ticket
  • Officer group email sfo@afaalaska.org (if one officer is flying /unavailable other officers can respond) 
  • Individual officer emails (if information is for a specific officer)
  • Calls/text (if situation requires more urgent attention)

When contacting Council 35 officers please avoid the following methods:

  • Sending to/from alaskaair email (subject to company audits and therefore not private)
  • Officer personal Facebook/social media accounts (not actively monitored for AFA concerns)
  • Excessively lengthy texts (please use email for important information as it’s easier to respond and forward to appropriate resource-texts should be reserved for alerts to an issue that requires a timely response)

Please allow at least one business day for a response to any method of contact (email, phone, text).  

In solidarity,

Melissa, Aladrian, James and Brad

Melissa Osborne, LEC President •  Melissa.osborne@afaalaska.org • 415-275-1322
Aladrian Hillmon, LEC Vice President • Aladrian.hillmon@afaalaska.org •  415-991-3791
James Ikehara, LEC Secretary •  James.ikehara@afaalaska.org  • 415-289-9011
Bradley Young, Council Representative • Bradley.young@afaalaska.org • 916-508-3503

[pmAS] Definition of Family Member for Sick Leave Purposes

This message is for pre-merger Alaska Airlines Flight Attendants

Siblings are now included under the definition of family members for sick leave purposes.

Under the Washington Paid Sick Leave Law (RCW 49.46.210) enacted in January 1, 2018, one of the many changes is adding an employee’s sibling under the definition of family members for whom a Flight Attendant may call in sick.  Even though this is a Washington State Law, this change in definition will apply to all Alaska Airlines Flight Attendants pursuant to Letter of Agreement 5 (Sick Family/Sick Child) in our current CBA.

If you have any questions about this change, please contact your Local Benefits Committee.

In Solidarity,

Your MEC – Jeffrey Peterson, Brian Palmer, Linda Christou, Lisa Pinkston, Terry Taylor, Mario de’Medici, Melissa Osborne, Tim Green, Brice McGee; and MEC Grievance Committee Chairperson Stephanie Adams

Washington Paid Sick Leave Law 2018

AFA alerted management in early January about a new paid sick leave law in effect January 1, 2018.  The law is encompassed in I-1433, RCW 49.46, and WAC 296-128.  Management did not respond to us with their position until yesterday at which time they advised their lobbying group, Airlines for America (A4A), filed suit against the State of Washington.

Management is planning on issuing a communication regarding their reasons why they believe these laws do not apply to you.  AFA does not agree with their interpretation of these laws, and we wanted to be the first to communicate this information to you.

Attached is the Complaint for Declaratory and Injunctive Relief filed February 6, 2018.  AFA strongly believes based on the timing, that we are the national union named on page 11 line 20 as insisting that management comply with the Act.

Be assured that AFA will utilize its full legal resources to fight this, and we will advise in upcoming communications how you can help with this fight.

In Solidarity,

Your MEC – Jeffrey Peterson, Brian Palmer, Linda Christou, Lisa Pinkston, Terry Taylor, Mario de’Medici, Melissa Osborne, Tim Green and Brice McGee

Interactions with Management and Sick Leave Policy

With 2016 coming to a rapid close, your Officers extend hearty thanks for all your hard work this year.  Your efforts to make SAN shine as a stellar base have made us the envy of the company.  Keep up the good work!

Your Officers meet regularly with Base Management and this week we focused on sick leave, as usage tends to increase this time of year. Familiarize yourself with our sick leave policy, Section 16 in the CBA, and the resources available to you. Your very knowledgeable Benefits Chair is Sonia Quackenbush.  She is your point person for all inquiries regarding sick leave and medical benefits and medical leaves.

Per §32.G.4, if you have 4 or fewer accumulated points and do not have any chargeable occurrences in November and December, your points will be removed and you will start 2017 with 0 points.  This is a great 4th quarter opportunity!

A great tip is to keep all receipts related to your sick call.  This may include prescriptions, OTC medications or office visit copay and will serve as proof should you ever be questioned about your sick leave usage. You do not have to divulge the nature of your illness, but having that proof is in your best interest.

This is a great segue to briefly discuss the handling of calls from Management. Our CBA states that they should not be calling you in before the start of a trip due to potential stress induced by the meeting. Your Officers feel that any meeting should take place on your day off with 4tfp compensation (§19.A.1.a). If for scheduling reasons, you do agree to meet at the end of a sequence, make sure you do not exceed the 10:30 duty day and you may not receive the 4tfp compensation that you would have received had you agreed to meet on a day off.  If they want to meet with you on day you are scheduled to fly, request that your trip be dropped and pay protected in lieu of the 4tfp.

Should you receive a call from any Inflight Supervisor, you are required to respond within a reasonable amount of time. It is advised to immediately clarify if the conversation could lead to a Record of Discussion (ROD) or Disciplinary Action. If the answer is in the affirmative, you can request a Union Representative to be involved in any further conversations and end the call.  If the Supervisor indicates that the conversation will not lead to an ROD or discipline, you may opt to continue the conversation over the phone or in person.  However, if at any time, you feel the questions to be leading or make you feel uncomfortable, you may request union representation and end the conversation.

Your Union Rep will act as your advocate and a second set of ears to ascertain that your point is received the way it was intended and not misconstrued and possibly used against you.  Should the company contact you, send us a text or email informing us of the request, since we are not always aware that you were contacted. You can reach your 3 Officers using  SAN@afaalaska.org

Social Media –  please be aware that the company can access (and has) all social media outlets during investigations, this includes Facebook, Instagram, Twitter etc. etc. Please be aware and careful of what you post for ALL to see. Privacy settings and secret groups do not ensure 100% privacy

In closing your leadership team in San Diego hopes all of you have a wonderful holiday season.

 

In Solidarity,

Your LEC Officers

AFA News in Review – September 19, 2025

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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 first 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

This message is for both pre-merger Alaska and Hawaiian Flight Attendants During this week’s MEC Meeting, our MEC held interviews for the next group of merged MEC Committee Chairpersons. 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 […]

Election Notice: Alaska + Hawaiian MEC Officer Elections

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SEA Domicile Negotiations – September 2025 Update #2

This message is for pre-merger Hawaiian Flight Attendants Negotiations Update Our SEA Domicile Negotiating Committee met with the company on September 11 to review their response to our September 5 proposal.  We feel that it is important to acknowledge the challenges within our company as Alaska management is struggling to understand our Collective Bargaining Agreement […]

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