April 30, 2009

INTEGRATION EFFORTS MOVE FORWARD, REPRESENTATION RESOLVED THIS SUMMER WITH TIME TO SPARE 

In yesterday's memo, Julie and Joanne implied the "barn is on fire" to amp up the pressure and anxiety we all feel, to rush our vote.  April 29th marks the six month anniversary of our merger. When you stop to think about all the work we've been able to accomplish, in the short amount of time since Delta and Northwest flight attendants began our journey together, it's obvious that our thoughtful and methodical - yet accelerated - campaign is working. In less time than it would have taken most campaigns to do just a few of these things - especially while working as active flight attendants - together we have:  

• Established our goal of an Industry Leading Contract for the world's largest airline
• Combined and updated our organizing database of 21,000 flight attendants
• Designed a 50 state organizing structure with 4 DL and 4 NW Campaign Leaders
• Recruited hundreds of concerned and motivated flight attendant volunteers
• Created multiple videos that explain why we want and need union representation
• Written and distributed dozens of issue-based campaign newsletters and fliers
• Announced our intent to file this summer without giving Delta executives a date to target
• Lobbied for new NMB appointee, whose pending confirmation may ensure a fair election
• Scientifically polled a sampling of NW & DL flight attendants regarding representation
• Initiated a petition which 1,700 of us signed, requesting Delta's neutrality in AFA election
• Planned & attended dozens of flight attendant “mixers” across the country
• Written, formatted, printed and mailed Winter Campaign Newsletter with comparisons
• Created the YouTube Channel for World Class Delta Flight Attendants with videos
• Hundreds have joined our World Class Delta Flight Attendants Facebook Group
• And much more - all found at www.deltaafa.org

WE ARE AFA and we are doing our very best, despite all obstacles and considerable resources thrown against us, to ensure our right to union representation and a chance at a World Class Contract for all flight attendants of the new Delta.

When will we have our vote?  We will file this summer when we are ready.  Over 60 years of collective bargaining is on the line and we have too much at stake to rush this vote.  In the meantime, there's a lot more work and we need your help to do it.  We're lucky to number in the hundreds of dedicated volunteers already, but we need more of you to lend a hand in our efforts to win this representation election and secure our right to negotiate a new contract.

We'd like to address some statements and inconsistencies in Julie and Joanne's memo:

"However, we cannot fly together until we have a combined set of work rules, which can only be determined after representation issues have been resolved."  Actually, there are a number of reasons that we cannot fly together at this time, including the "small" fact that the proposed training plan submitted by Delta still has not been approved by the FAA.  Additionally, when the training plan is approved by the FAA, keep in mind that NW flight attendants are currently scheduled for training on Delta aircraft through March 2010. If all goes as the planned and that continues to be the case, we expect that the SOC (Single Operating Certificate) will be received in early 2010 (to coincide with our completed training.) 

"..our pilots will be integrated when the single operating certificate is received later this year." If this is correct for our pilot group, it logically follows that flight attendants won't be able to fly together until the single operating certificate is received either.  Also, please keep in mind that it is not set in stone that the SOC will be received late this year. These are important points that Joanne & Julie leave out of their comments.

"To see why delay is harmful, we need only look at the flight attendants at US Airways who, three and a half years after the US Airways-America West merger, are still unhappily working under bankruptcy-related concessionary contracts and separate seniority lists."  The US Airways-America West merger is "apples and oranges" to our own.  They had considerable issues with pilot seniority integration that continue to this day.  Our pilots have already settled their seniority integration and we already have an integration recommendation from Delta flight attendants.  That should make our own seniority integration go very quickly, when the time is right.  Most things of value take time, but there is absolutely no reason to indicate that our negotiations should drag on for years. Since both AFA flight attendants and Delta management are motivated to move quickly with integration and concerned with the success and well being of our airline and of all workers, our negotiations should speed along at a pace never before seen in labor-management relations.  In fact, we saw this with our pilots, who negotiated their contract in a matter of a few months. 

"The 21,000 flight attendants of Delta Air Lines deserve better."  On this point we agree 100% - we 21,000 flight attendants of Delta Air Lines deserve a World Class Contract for our World Class Airline.  We deserve the same opportunity, respect and legally binding agreement that our pilots and executives already enjoy at Delta Air Lines.  We are dedicated to this goal of a premier contract, and will work hard to give all new Delta flight attendants the best chance possible to achieve it.  Please visit www.deltaafa.org and we'll move this campaign even faster with your help!