• NEGOTIATIONS UPDATE JULY 6, 2010
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NEGOTIATIONS UPDATE JULY 6, 2010

The Joint Negotiating Committee (JNC) will continue the negotiation of a merged contract this month. The JNC and the company will meet July 13-15 in PHX and July 20-22 in CLT.

There are a lot of rumors "flying" around. The most disturbing one is the rumor that once a tentative agreement is reached; the members will not get to vote. It is unclear how the rumor started or why.

The Union does not vote for a contract. The membership does. Right now there is nothing to vote on. The JNC is negotiating a new contract that covers both East and West flight attendants. The JNC has not reached a Tentative Agreement yet.

Here is how the process is designed to work - and how it will work.

1 - The JNC negotiates with the Company to reach a Tentative Agreement.

2 - When the JNC has completed the negotiation process, the Tentative Agreement is brought to the Master Executive Council (the Local Council Presidents from each domicile) for their review. At that point, the MEC decides whether or not the JNC has reached an acceptable agreement. If the MEC decides the agreement is not good enough then they tell the JNC to go back to the bargaining table and keep negotiating. If the MEC decides the agreement is acceptable, the agreement is sent to the membership for a ratification vote.

3 - The agreement is then sent to the membership for their review. The review process takes several forms. In-person "road shows" at all domiciles will be held. Information is mailed to your homes and available in your mail files and crew rooms.

4 - A vote is then conducted.

5 - The results are the results.

At the point negotiations are complete every member will have all the information in front of them in order to cast an informed vote. The negotiation process is complex. One of the principals in any negotiation is not to let the other party-in this case the Company- know what our (your) final bargaining position(s) is. The deeper into negotiations the JNC is, the more important it is to keep the bargaining position(s)-just like cards in a poker game- very close to the vest. Anything less, is irresponsible and simply telegraphs to the Company what the Union will agree to or what the members may vote for.

As discussed in previous Elines, the MEC and the JNC decided to pursue a contract that could (depending on the ability of the pilots to reach their own merged contract) cause flight attendants to fly different trips than the pilots. Flying different trips than the pilots does not mean the end of the "Me-Too" clauses. It would mean the beginning of the "Me" clauses. Every single clause in our contract that protects us in the form of Me Too language such as duty rigs, rest provisions, duty time limitations, hotels and a host of others will be negotiated into the new agreement.

Not flying with the pilots does not mean working under the current West flight attendant work rules either. We are negotiating a new contract.

I am not sure why people are saying that flight attendants will be working 16 hour days- flight attendants won't. I am not sure why people are saying that every overnight will only have the minimum FAR rest- they won't. As we work toward finalizing this contract and close out sections such as Scheduling, Hours of Service and Reserve we will be able to publish those sections in advance of the full Tentative Agreement. Until those sections are actually closed, we will not publish them. If we did, people would write about them, post them on Facebook or other social media sites with their comments. The company would then see those postings and there goes any bargaining leverage we (you) have.

I would like to reiterate two points. The first is to make sure everyone understands they will have the chance to vote on the contract. The second is to wait until you see that contract before deciding how you are going to vote.

In closing, there is one other rumor I would like to address. That rumor is that you will only be given the information for a seven day period- and then have to vote. That did happen before. That was because the bankruptcy court forced that timeline. We are not in bankruptcy now, so the informational and voting phases for a merged agreement will be sufficiently longer.

Everyone wants transparency-especially the Company. So the JNC has a choice to make. We can telegraph every move to the Company or we can do our job and make them work toward our position.

I have also included the June 17, 2010 Negotiations Update for your review below.

Thank you,

Mike Flores, President
The US Airways Master Executive Council
AFA-CWA

NEGOTIATIONS UPDATE JUNE 17, 2010

ATTENTION - THE RUMOR MILL IS RUNNING RAMPANT - WHY, I DON'T KNOW. THE RUMOR MILL HAS SPIT OUT INFORMATION THAT A VOTE IS TAKING PLACE AT THIS TIME AND MEMBERS DO NOT GET A VOTE.

THERE HAS NEVER BEEN A CONTRACT THAT HAS NOT BEEN SUBJECT TO MEMBERSHIP RATIFICATION. THAT WILL NOT CHANGE UNDER MY WATCH.

IN THE PAST THERE HAVE BEEN CONTRACTS SENT OUT FOR RATIFICATION VOTES THAT DID NOT CONTAIN ALL OF THE INFORMATION NECESSARY TO MAKE AN INFORMED DECISION. THAT WILL NOT HAPPEN UNDER THIS ADMINISTRATION.

YOU WILL RECEIVE MORE INFORMATION ABOUT THIS CONTRACT BEFORE A VOTE TAKES PLACE THAN ANY CONTRACT BEFORE.

The Joint Negotiating Committee and the Company continue to meet in an effort to reach a merged Flight Attendant Agreement. The negotiation has taken a long time and we are making progress.

We are currently working on three major sections of our contract - Scheduling, Reserve and Hours of Service. All three of those sections are related and provisions in one section affect the others.

The negotiation of a contract is a VERY complex process which includes direct negations by the Joint Negotiating Committee (JNC) and the Company in an effort to secure a "Tentative Agreement" (T/A), Once that happens the T/A is sent to the members of each Master Executive Council (Local Council President) to decide whether to send the agreement to the members for a ratification vote or send the JNC back to the negotiating table. If the MEC sends the contract out for a vote each member then has the right to vote to accept or reject the contract.

I want to discuss several rumors running rampant among our members regarding the negotiation process. These rumors are in the form of emails, text messages and Facebook pages.

The rumors are:

-- We are "within in week" of completing a contract and you need to call Mike Flores to "register" your vote.

Whoever started this rumor is simply starting rumors. We are not within a week of settling a contract. Hopefully we are within several months of reaching an agreement. There is no need to call me to "vote". This contract will require membership ratification. I don't count or tally votes. Feel free to call me anytime to talk about anything else- but not to vote.

-- Flight Attendants will not vote on a contract.

Every member will have a vote. Furthermore, you will receive more information about the terms of this contract than you have ever received before you cast a vote. The rumor that the Union can force a contract on the members is false and irresponsible. When the time comes for a ratification vote you will know well in advance all of the provisions and details of the contract.

-- Not flying the same trips as the Pilots is going to mean the end of the "Me Too" provisions of our contract.

Again, this is a false and unsubstantiated rumor. It is true the JNC-at the direction of the MEC-is considering trip separation from the pilots.

Pairing Separation may be necessary if the pilots do not have a merged agreement. Not flying the same pairings as the pilots DOES NOT MEAN THE END OF THE ME TOO CLAUSES.

There is more to the story than you are hearing on the jumpseat. The simple fact is, in order for us to continue to Co-pair with the pilots, the pilots must also reach a merged agreement with their fellow America West pilots. The Company and the Union are on record as wishing to continue Co-pairing with the pilots however that can't happen without a merged pilot agreement. I wish it was possible to say when a merged pilot agreement will happen- but it is not. Therefore, we have openly discussed- and this is not a new discussion- flying separate trips from the pilots. This discussion began 18 months ago when the pilots were unable to agree on a pilot seniority list that stalled their negotiations. The pilots have their own battles to fight and I believe in and support USAPA in their endeavor to protect seniority. The problem for AFA and our members is that may take some time for their battle to end.

In the meantime, AFA members labor under a bankruptcy contract that robs us of what we are all due.

The core of the "Me Too" language revolves around Duty Rigs, Rest Provisions, Duty Time Limitations and Hotel Accommodations. Nothing prevents AFA from negotiating our own Duty Rigs, Rest, Duty Time. We have done that and, in fact, negotiated better provisions in all respects than either group currently has. We have incorporated- and improved- all the "Me Too" language into our own contract for your protection. In addition, because all of the "Me Too" language will be in OUR contract, it can't be altered by subsequent pilot language. Most of us know that the pilot gave up the 1-3 duty rig and the Min Day language to protect against furloughs. No one from AFA, or more importantly you, could stop that.

The bottom line is that a possible separation from pilot pairings does not in any way reduce the "Me Too" provisions as long as we have the language built into our agreement.

Once the JNC and the MEC approve an agreement, each member will be provided the information necessary to make an informed decision when it comes time to vote.

In closing, the JNC will ensure that when the pilots reach a merged agreement and Co-pairing is again possible, the contract will provide an avenue to Co-pair with the pilots subject to membership ratification.

Mike Flores, President
The US Airways Master Executive Council
MFlores@afausairways.org
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

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AFA Local Numbers
 
Council 41 DCA 703-212-8090
Council 70 PHL 215-492-0840
Council 89 CLT 704-527-0325


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