FRH – 11.05.14
FACT Rep Update – November 5, 2014
Flight Attendant Communications Team
T/A Call Center number: (682) 292-0244
9:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. Central Time M-F
*Saturday 9:00 am – 5:00 pm Central Time*
FACT: Balloting closes on November 9, 2014 at 10 AM Central Time. If you do not have your 16-digit activation code, VIN or PIN, please contact the National Ballot Committee by emailing [email protected] or by calling (817) 540-0108, ext. 8311. The National Balloting Committee does not resend ballot packets.
To vote by phone: 800-698-3789
To vote by Internet: https://ballotpoint.com/apfa
FACT: The Contract Comparison chart between the T/A, Delta, United and Continental agreements has been posted to www.www.apfa.org/negotiations or you can click here to download.
FACT: All negotiations related information can be found at www.www.apfa.org/roadshow including the implementation schedule. Also, for those Flight Attendants unable to attend the APFA roadshow, audio and video segments listed by the speaker as well as by the contractual item discussed can be found at http://www.www.apfa.org/roadshowvideos.
Aggregate and Airline Industry Economics Explained
FACT or fiction?
Q: Why are we not in regular Section 6 negotiations?
A: Section 6 bargaining takes place only when a contract becomes amendable. The merger of two airlines with their own separate contracts does not trigger Section 6. Since the LUS contract is not amendable until 2018 and the LAA Conditional Labor Agreement is not amendable until 2019, we are years away from Section 6 bargaining. But for the Negotiations Protocol Agreement (NPA), there would be no deadline, no contractual improvements, and no pressure on management to reach a joint contract.
Q: Why are we bargaining at all, then?
A: In order to achieve the full synergies of a merger, Joint Collective Bargaining Agreements (JCBA) are important for represented employees, the company and investors. The lack of a JCBA over an extended period of time can wreak havoc on a merger. One only has to look at the Continental/United negotiations to see how this has traditionally worked for both sides.
The combined Flight Attendant group (UAL/CAL) has been negotiating for a Joint Collective Bargaining Agreement (JCBA) since December 2012. Since both the United and Continental contracts are not amendable, these negotiations are not governed by Section 6 of the RLA. While the Continental CBA will become amendable on December 31st of this year, the National Mediation Board will not consider releasing the Flight Attendants into a 30-day cooling off period (the last step before the parties can engage in self-help – the union initiating a strike and the airline unilaterally imposing contract changes) – before the United Flight Attendants’ CBA also becomes amendable (February 28, 2016). This situation was exactly what happened during the negotiations for a JCBA for the US Airways and America West Flight Attendants and is not one that current management at the new American wants to repeat.
Remember, when the three unions on AA’s property were approached by US Airways management about a possible merger in March 2012, each of the unions secured deals that would override any LBFO/bankruptcy deal reached in Chapter 11 upon exit and merger. APA and TWU agreed to industry standard contracts that would go into effect on exit day. APFA took a different approach and agreed to immediate improvements with the Conditional Labor Agreement (CLA) followed by expedited bargaining alongside LUS negotiators for an industry-leading contract.
Q: Why can’t we go back to the table if the T/A doesn’t ratify? Wouldn’t mediation produce more money?
Answer: Before ratifying a JCBA that covered the Flight Attendants of both US Airways and the America West, the Flight Attendants rejected two T/As. What is instructive is to look at the changes management agreed to from the first T/A through to the third. Following a “No” vote on T/A 1, management did not add a dollar more to T/A 2 or to T/A 3 (now the current LUS contract), which was ultimately ratified. The company was only willing to shift the money around, allocating more to one area like wages while reducing the amount devoted to another area, such as benefits. At that time management made it clear that it would not reward a “No” vote with a richer agreement.
Today, that is particularly true. The other work groups at American are now waiting in line to negotiate contracts and possible improvements. If management agreed to a better deal after we rejected the T/A, these other groups would be encouraged to do the same – say no to the first TA and expect the company to agree to an even richer second T/A.
Arbitration dates are set for December in the event the T/A is not ratified. Where, as is the case here, a T/A has already been reached but rejected, the only role mediation will have is to narrow the issues to be resolved in arbitration.
Q: What will the difference in our contract be if we ratify versus reject the T/A?
A: If the T/A ratifies, we will see $193 million in improvements over the current combined value of the LAA and LUS CBAs. As provided by the Negotiations Protocol Agreement, if the T/A doesn’t ratify, the arbitrators must produce a contract “equal to the value of market based in the aggregate.” Market based in the aggregate is worth no more than $111 million in annual improvements, $82 million less a year than the value of the T/A.
We will get improvements one way or another. With T/A ratification, we will see $193 million in annual improvements including $82 million a year above market rate. With arbitration, we will see up to $111 million in improvements over the value of our current combined contracts, which excludes the $82 million premium value of the T/A. The NPA lays out the path, and if the T/A doesn’t ratify, the Flight Attendants will receive a contract “equal to the value of market based in the aggregate.”
Q: Under the T/A when will the provision regarding unscheduled deadhead be implemented for LUS Flight Attendants?
A: The Current “Red Book” language for LUS Flight Attendants regarding positive space deadhead travel will remain in effect until “Flight Attendant Operational Integration” which is predicted to be 18-24 months after the date of ratification.
Q: Will a Flight Attendant be required to exceed her/his maximum duty day to deadhead?
A: No. Flight Attendants will never be required to waive their duty limitations. Should a Flight Attendant choose to waive their duty day maximum to deadhead then the “Voluntary Waiver of Flight Duty Limitations” will apply and s/he will be paid the additional rate of 1 minute for every 2 minutes on duty for the entire duty period in addition to all other pay for the sequence.
As a member of FACT we ask that you please share this information with your co-workers in person, via email, and posted to social media to ensure everyone is getting the FACTs. If you have any questions please email me at [email protected].
AmericanAirlines + US Airways
“On Our Way”
Kelli Harrington, LAX-I
FACT Rep Coordinator