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Greetings, AFA 66 eCommunication - Thursday, September 24,
2009 At their Master Executive Council meeting of the Association of Flight Attendants for US Airways, AFA Presidents from all five US Airways East bases unanimously passed a resolution in support of the America West Section 6 negotiations. Council 66 MEC President Lisa LeCarre and MEC Secretary-Treasurer Jeffrey Albers were invited to attend the meeting held in Charlotte on Tuesday, September 22, 2009. Local Executive Council Presidents Annie Crowley (CLT), Lynn Caramello (BOS), Rob Wessinger (LGW), Alin Boswell (DCA), and John McCorkle (PHL) were in attendance along with MEC officers President Mike Flores, Vice President Buddy Brandon, and Secretary-Treasurer Deborah McCormick. The invitation allowed the Council 66 officers LeCarre and Albers to observe and participate in the multi-base meeting of US Airways AFA leaders. During the meeting, LeCarre provided a PowerPoint presentation reviewing the history and outlining the current status of our Section 6 America West Flight Attendant negotiations. America West Flight Attendants work under a contract that
became amendable in 2004 and were in Section 6 (under the
Railway Labor Act) negotiations at the time of the US Airways/
America West merger in 2005. After the merger was announced, the
NMB forced the America West Flight Attendants out of those
negotiations and into negotiations for a merged contract with US
Airways Flight Attendants. For almost four years the two Flight Attendant groups have been locked in protracted negotiations toward a single agreement and have yet to reach an agreement with the Company- all while the America West Section 6 negotiations have sat on the back burner. After pointed questions and discussion, the East AFA MEC agreed to draft a resolution in support of the America West flight attendants in our quest for economic relief through Section 6 while continuing to negotiate toward a merged contract. The US Airways AFA resolved to stand in solidarity behind the
America West flight attendants in their efforts to seek economic
relief through Section 6 negotiations, and resolved that the US
Airways flight attendants and the America West flight attendants
will join together in solidarity regarding any negotiation
efforts to attain the resolution of an industry leading merged
contract. Whereas, the America West flight attendants were in Section 6 contract negotiations since 2004 and had almost completed those negotiations prior to the merger of US Airways and America West in September 2005. Whereas, America West flight attendants have had their pay rates frozen since 2002, and Whereas, the National Mediation Board put the America West Section 6 negotiations in recess based upon the premise of US Airways’ commitment to a merged contract for both US Airways East and the America West Flight attendants as a combined workforce, and Whereas, the US Airways flight attendants have been working under three concessionary contracts since 2002, and Whereas, America West and US Airways flight attendants have been actively engaged in merged contract negotiations for more than three and a half years with no remedy provided under the Railway Labor Act, and Whereas, The US Airways Master Executive Council supports the collective membership of America West flight attendants and will encourage and support the activities and future events that may be planned to pressure US Airways management to provide for their economic relief, Therefore, be it resolved that the US Airways Master Executive Council stands in solidarity behind the America West flight attendants in their efforts to seek economic relief through Section 6 negotiations, and, Therefore, be it finally resolved, the US Airways flight attendants and the America West flight attendants will join together in solidarity regarding any negotiation efforts to attain the resolution of an industry leading merged contract. The US Airways Master Executive Council (East) Mike Flores, MEC President Alin Boswell, LEC President Council 41 (DCA) |
