July 2, 2016

TA Q&A - 6-29-16

Date: 6/29/2016

Why is there no signing bonus?

Historically, signing bonuses have not been valued against the overall agreement. However, in recent labor agreements throughout our industry, management has started to cost signing bonuses against the value of the agreement. In other words, increases to wages and benefits would be sacrificed. Unions have had to make a tough decision between a one-time signing bonus and provisions that would live for the duration of the Contract and beyond. Obtaining a signing bonus that would have significant value to Flight Attendants would have meant foregoing more valuable improvements that we achieved.

The cost of a $10,000 signing bonus for 25,000 Flight Attendants would be $250 million. To achieve that number on a 5-year contract, this would mean reducing our wages by $50 million a year, or the equivalent of reducing our compensation package by more than $2,000 a year for each Flight Attendant. That would also have additional impact on other areas of compensation such as 401(k)/retirement contributions, profit sharing, vacation value and all other pay factors associated with our pay rate for each year going forward. Finally, it would mean decreasing the overall value of the contract, creating a lower bar for the next negotiations.

Voting will begin July 15, 2016 and continue through August 12, 2016 at Noon Eastern Time. Following presentation of all of the details of the Tentative Agreement and the full contract language, the JNC will begin a series of Information Sessions around the system, including a live Webcast planned for July 13th. Information will be sent to members' homes along with voting instructions and there will be numerous ways for members to get answers to all of their questions in order to cast an informed vote.

Balloting will be conducted electronically through VoteNet Solutions, the leading provider of secure on-demand voting and balloting software and telephone voting for organizations including unions, membership, trade and other organizations. The member voting credentials are provided directly to the printer used by VoteNet and do not pass through AFA. Duplicate instructions are also only provided by the VoteNet system. A link to the VoteNet secure site will be accessible through OurContract.org once balloting opens.

The rules for balloting will change in the future due to an expected new rule from the Department of Labor and action by the AFA Board of Directors this year. These new procedures require an implementation process expected to be complete by the end of the year. That means this voting process will be familiar to all AFA members – as information becomes available during the ratification process AFA members can access their ballot and recast a vote. Only the last vote cast will be counted by the electronic balloting agency.

In addition to information posted on-line, the Tentative Agreement (TA) summary and balloting instructions will be provided to all members eligible to vote, including members who have the opportunity to become eligible during the voting process:

1. All active AFA Members in good standing (dues current, active AFA member) are eligible to vote. Members ineligible due to non-payment of dues will be notified when attempting to vote and will be directed to the AFA Membership Department to become current in order to vote.
2. Flight Attendants on Probation will be eligible to vote during the entire period the ballot is open, provided they are scheduled to complete probation before the ballot count date.
   
   (The AFA Board of Directors voted to change this provision this year, recognizing the need to encourage and allow our newest members to take part in our democracy sooner. The Local Presidents from all AFA-member airlines voted to make Flight Attendants eligible to pay dues for full AFA membership after four months of flying, but the implementation of this provision requires substantial planning with all of the AFA- member airlines and is not expected to become effective before January 2017.)
3. Inactive Members (Leaves of Absence, COBUS, etc.) may choose to “leave and remain active” to continue payment of dues during the leave in order to be eligible to vote.

Contact the AFA Ballot Help Line at 800-424- 2401, press 1 and extension 706, to complete the process to “leave and remain active.”

2016-2021 Tentative Agreement Roadshows

 Currently, we have confirmed the following dates and locations for the upcoming TA Roadshows:

 
*Dates, times, and locations are subject to change as the work of confirming the logistics for these locations is ongoing.  More information will be made available as details are finalized. We encourage you to check the ourcontract.org website regularly.

Comprehensive Summary of Our Tentative Agreement

July 2, 2016

Dear Fellow Flight Attendants:

As the elected leaders representing all 25,000 United Flight Attendants, we stand behind the Tentative Agreement and unanimously approved submitting it to AFA members for ratification. With your approval, our Flight Attendant contract will set new industry standards that push our careers forward as United Airlines seeks to restore our premiere status in the industry.

Review this comprehensive summary of the terms of our Tentative Agreement. We know there will be many questions and the summary will need to be supplemented with further explanation. We will answer your questions each day in addition to providing you with the full language of the Tentative Agreement.

The JNC continues to review the hundreds of pages of full contract language that has been written over the course of the negotiations. This is unlike any other contract negotiations as we put three contracts together for the foundation that will shape our careers going forward. It is critical that the correct language be posted for the on-going protection of our contractual rights. The full language of the Tentative Agreement will be posted by July 11, 2016.

A series of JNC Information Sessions will begin on July 11^th as well, including a live Webcast scheduled for July 13^th at 1100 Eastern. There will also be Local Council meetings for review of the Tentative Agreement. Every day additional information tools will be posted on OurContract.org. We will answer all of your questions and provide you with all of the information necessary to cast an informed vote.

Make sure you are signed up for updates on OurContract.org and take the time necessary to review all of the information and get all of your questions answered. Flight Attendants deserve a joint collective bargaining agreement to obtain all of the benefits of a fully integrated airline and which reflects our hard work on the frontline of United Airlines. Now is the time to move forward. We are stronger and better together.

In Solidarity,

The AFA-CWA United Airlines JNC and Joint CAL/CMI/UAL MEC

Comprehensive TA Summary

JNC Information Sessions Schedule

TA Q and A #2

[Video] TA Q and A - Cabin Jumpseat Authority 

United Announces: Special 3 and 7 Month Leave of Absence

The company announced they will be offering a three (3) and seven (7) month Special Leaves of Absence starting with the September 2016 schedule month, as provided under Section 23.B. of our Contract.

Bidding for this Special Leave opened yesterday, Thursday, June 30, 2016 and will close on Friday, July 15, 2016 at 8:00am Central Time.  Flight Attendants can submit their request using the Unimatic command LOAREQ. When completing the DIS page enter the schedule month dates of:

3 Month Leave 

• August 30, 2016 (08-30-16) through November 29, 2016 (11-29-16)
  

7 Month Leave

• August 30, 2016 (08-30-16) through April 01, 2017 (04-01-17)

Should you choose to bid for this special leave it is important to carefully review the company's Special Leave of Absence information, particularly as it pertains to insurance, pass travel, vacation and sick leave accrual. Special Leave status will affect each of these benefits and could also affect seniority accrual if on Special Leave status for more than 180 days in any 12 month period, as outlined in Section 23.B. of the Contract.

Please note, Flight Attendants awarded Special Leaves totaling 180 days or more within a 12 month period will not accrue seniority for each of the days in excess of 180 days on Special Leave status.  These individuals will also be away from the workplace during the Contractual Vacation Bidding timeline which, based on the language in Section 18.E., opens on October 29th at 0830 Local domicile time.  Finally, current Vacation Accrual is measured from September of one year through August of the subsequent year.  These Special Leaves of Absence will impact (reduce) vacation accrued in 2017 for use in 2018.  In other words, those individuals who take this seven (7) month special leave will experience a reduction in their 2018 Vacation accrual - a 7/12 reduction in the amount of vacation to which Contractually entitled by their company seniority.

Flight Attendants wishing to take advantage of this opportunity should make an informed choice and consider the benefits and consequences of this and all Special Leave and any other periods of absence during the past year..  Flight Attendants can download a copy of United’s Leave of Absence package by going to Flying Together > Inflight Services > Administration > Inflight Services - Flight Attendant Support Team > Leave of Absence Information.

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