12 December 2008

PILOT ARBITRATION AWARD AND HOW IT AFFECTS US                                       

Earlier this week, a three-person arbitration panel issued its binding decision in the matter of Delta and Northwest pilot seniority integration. The arbitrators chose a “Status, Category and Ratio” method to integrate the smaller (but more senior) pre-merger Northwest pilot group, and the larger (but more junior) Delta pilot group.  Decide for yourself how each of the pilot groups fared in their arbitration by clicking HERE to view the award and click HERE for AFA legal’s summary of the decision.  It should be noted that the NW & DL pilot seniority integration decision has very little relevance to that of flight attendant seniority integration – our situations are “apples to oranges.”  For AFA International's statements, visit http://afanet.org/default.asp?id=7.

AFA MEETS WITH OBAMA TRANSITION TEAM                                                        

This week the AFA-CWA leadership met with the Obama transition team to discuss concerns about the National Mediation Board, political appointments to the Board, and NMB’s role in representational elections and contract negotiations.  The NMB is a federal agency that facilitates union-management relations at airlines and railroads and is made up of three individuals, two of whom represent the majority party of the President of the United States, and one board member represents the minority party.  The term of the current NMB Chairperson, Read Van de Water, ex-NWA Director of Government Affairs, expired earlier this year, and she is now  a holdover appointment, and we have insisted that she be replaced immediatedly once the Obama Administration takes over.  The Obama Administration is placing a very high priority on protecting good union jobs and will more than likely make appointments to the NMB with those that will make balanced decisions, rather than the current pro-corporation approach.

MEC GOVERNMENT AFFAIRS CHAIRS MEET IN DC                             

The AFA-CWA Political/Legislative Policy Committee met this week in Washington, D.C.  with MEC Government Affairs Chairs from all AFA-CWA represented airlines, to discuss our legislative agenda for the 111th Congress. This meeting takes place annually and all MEC Chairs are asked to submit requests from their respective MECs for issues that we will be advocating for with the new Congress. This year we will be focusing our efforts on the passage of the FAA Reauthorization bill which contains seven flight attendant specific provisions as well as passage of the FMLA Technical Corrections Act.  Both of these bills passed the House of Representatives in the 110th Congress, but got stuck in the Senate.  We are hopeful that with a new majority in the Senate and a return of many of our co-sponsors in both Houses we will be able to secure a victory for all flight attendants with the passage of these two very important bills.  Please visit http://www.nwaafa.org/committees/govaffairs/ for a complete report of the issues that we will be advocating for with the 111th Congress and the results of the 2008 elections.  – Submitted by MEC Government Affairs Chair Albert Garcia

OUR CONTRACT IS A LIVING DOCUMENT - PARKING/SATELLITES/EARLY OUTS

CONTRACTUAL MEDICAL BENEFITS -  

WHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW NOW & IN RETIREMENT

Our traditional indemnity medical plan is outlined in Section 29 – Insurance Benefits.  This language stipulates plan coverage and limits cost increases. Delta’s current medical plans are known as “high deductible plans” – Health Savings Accounts and Health Reimbursement Accounts.  Our Delta colleagues have much higher deductibles, out-of-pocket expenses, and prescription costs, and Delta retirees are charged over $500 per month for medical.  Retiree medical is offered at Delta management’s discretion, and active flight attendant benefits can be changed at any time.  Without a contract, even our past retirees could lose medical coverage and/or their premium subsidy.  If we have no contract, we must assume nothing continues.   For a new abbreviated comparison of the current DL & NW Medical plans and The Evolution on Non-Contract Delta Air Lines Retiree Benefits, please visit the Insurance & Retirement Committee page at www.nwaafa.org.  When we vote to keep our union, we keep our legal right to our current medical benefits, and we can negotiate for better benefits for all Delta flight attendants.  - Research by MaryLou Savage, AFA Senior Benefits Attorney

Volunteers from around the system joined union and company representatives to kick off the 2009 PBS Support Team, via conference call on Thursday, December 11, 2008.  This was a preliminary meeting, to establish some guidelines and goals.  The Team’s first face-to-face meeting will take place in MSP on January 12th, for an all day meeting.  This team is the latest crucial step in the PBS rollout and fine tuning process.  As with SLIC, it will take time and a lot of union and company cooperation to tweak programming for highest bidder satisfaction.  For more information on PBS and our contractual right to ongoing feedback, please read LOA 15  and the PBS Support Team description on the Scheduling Committee page.  We thank our member volunteers, the AFA PBS Implementation Team and our PBS Counselors for their efforts over the past several months to assist all members in the transition to PBS.

FIRST ANNUAL HEIDI JOOST AWARD – NOMINATIONS WELCOME! 

Please join the Association of Flight Attendants at Northwest Airlines in honoring a Northwest flight attendant who has demonstrated heroism in the line of duty as an In-flight Safety Professional.  This award carries the name and honors the memory of Northwest flight attendant Heidi Joost, who died while carrying out her duties as a safety professional.  Heidi perished, along with several passengers, in the tail cone of an NWA DC-9 in an aircraft accident at DTW in 1990.  We welcome member nominations for this award and ask that they be submitted to Janette Rook at: jrook@nwaafa.org before December 31, 2008. 

CWA 2009 BEIRNE SCHOLARSHIP OFFERINGS                                                       

Are you or a family member attending college during 2009-2010?  As members of AFA-CWA, you are eligible to apply for fifteen CWA two-year scholarships, at $3000 each.  These are available to CWA members, their spouses, children, and grandchildren - including those of laid off, retired or deceased members.  Winners will be selected in a lottery drawing and will be eligible to receive a second year scholarship in the same amount, contingent on satisfactory academic accomplishment.  Part-time students will receive half of the scholarship monies.  Please go to www.cwa-union.org or click HERE for more information about the scholarships.  On-line applications are accepted between now and March 31, 2009.  Your CWA Local Numbers for the application are:  NYC - 21091, BOS - 21092, MEM - 23093, DTW - 24094, MSP - 27095, SEA - 27096, SFO - 29097, LAX - 29098, and HNL - 29099.  Association of Flight Attendants Scholarship Fund and other affiliated scholarship information can be found at www.afanet.org. 

BRING QUESTIONS. BRING A COLLEAGUE. GET MOTIVATED. GET INVOLVED.

The MEC meeting schedule and the Local Meeting schedule are found under the “Events” tab at www.nwaafa.org.  Delta Flight Attendants will be invited to local union meetings throughout the country in the coming year, and there will be mixers and trainings planned and posted at www.deltaafa.org.  December 16-18th, join us in AMS for Town Hall Meetings - print flyer and share.