Ladies and Gentlemen of Council 21,

As was reported on Friday, the Company and the Union have agreed to settle MEC Grievance 1-14, regarding vacation accrual while on Occupational Illness or Injury Leave. Please follow this link for more detailed information: http://unitedafa.org/news/details.aspx?id=17255

As the year comes to a close, there are many necessary tasks that must be accomplished in a short period of time. We want to take a minute to remind you of several important dates for you to know. You will find the detailed information below.

Our Local Office fields calls daily on a variety of Flight Attendant issues. Many of these issues involve interactions with the Crew Desk. It is important, when speaking to a Crew Scheduler, that you are sure to get their name and note the time that the call was made. If you encounter any issues or believe that there has been a contractual violation, remember to contact us!

As always, we have a Volunteer from the Reserve Committee and either an Officer or Volunteer available 24/7. Please call us @ 703 260 0051, and follow the prompts: After Hours - Press 1 for Reserve, 2 for immediate issues, 3 to leave a message (calls returned next business day).

We extend our Congratulations to our New Hire Flight Attendants in Council 21 who are finishing their probationary period through this month. You all have done a great job!

 Thank you all for being informed and engaged Members. Please remember to fly safe, challenge rumor and to respect each other.

 In Solidarity and with Respect,

Todd Failla

Local Executive Council President

AFA-CWA DCA, Council 21

AFL-CIO

 

 Open Enrollment Closes Oct 28th – Make Your Selections

Open enrollment is currently ongoing for active employees and will close on October 28th, 2016. Retirees enrollment dates are October 31, 2016 through November 11, 2016.

We stress the importance of going online to the Your Benefits Resources (YBR) site from the company’s website during Open Enrollment to compare plan summaries, their benefit levels, and monthly premium costs. Keeping in mind that each benefit plan is available for all 24,000 United Airlines Flight Attendants regardless of your pre-merger airline.

Note: The TRICARE Supplemental Plan is a plan that is uniquely designed for those who are military or dependents of military personnel.  What’s unique about this plan is that those who are eligible to participate in the plan know they are eligible.  This plan is not available as a medical plan option unless you are military or the dependent of military personnel.

Note: For 2017, you may see s-UA or s-CO designations for some Kaiser HMO plans. The reason for the two plans is that there were two different plan designs for these HMO plans before the UA/CO merger. The plan group number is different with not all co-pays being the same. Due to contractual requirements for some employee groups, United will continue to offer separate pre-merger UA and pre-merger CAL Kaiser plans until no longer required to do so.

A review of this information is essential as you make decisions and choose the right plans for you and your family. Please visit our website to review the entire report.

For additional information visit our website. You may also contact the United Benefits Call Center for enrollment support, questions, benefit information, and plan summaries at (800) 651-1007.

Free Flu Shots or Shot Voucher Now Available

Cold and flu season are upon us. The best form of prevention is to protect yourself with a flu shot. The CDC recommends flu shots for everyone 6 months of age and older as your first and most important step in protecting against the flu.

Flu shots are available for employees, free of charge during the onsite events that are currently taking place across the system, while supplies last. Click here for more information on locations and times.

In addition to the on-site flu shots, you may also print your free flu shot voucher and present it along with your employee ID at any CVS pharmacy location. You must redeem your voucher by Dec. 31, 2016.

Flu shots are available at all domestic hubs and our onsite clinics at EWR, ORD, GUM or IAH; no appointment is necessary. Click here for more information about onsite clinic hours and locations.

Vacation Bidding Opens This Week:

New Hire Corner - 1-in-7 with Overlap:

The Local Reserve Committee continues to get numerous inquiries from Flight Attendants whose awarded schedules have put them on duty (any combination of reserve days and/or line trips) for 7 or more days during the month end overlap period. 

 

Keep in mind the 1 in 7 legality is very different than the 24 in 7 FAR legality, but the two can be easily confused.  There is always a Reserve Committee Member available and on call should you need clarification regarding this legality or any other reserve related issue.

(From Reserve Survival Guide, Section IV)

1-in-7 (7.F., 10.D. and 12.K)

The 1-in-7 language states that a Flight Attendant must be scheduled to have at least one day off in every seven (i.e., be on duty for no more than six days). If a Flight Attendant ends up on duty for seven or more days during a month-end overlap period due to line awards, this end of the month conflict (EOM) is considered automatically waived unless the Flight Attendant notifies the Company she/he does not want to waive it prior to the first day of the schedule month. Upon mutual agreement, the crew scheduler will then move a Reserve day to another day later in the month the Flight Attendant originally had off. Other important points about the one-in seven:

Domestically - Can only be satisfied by one calendar day (midnight to midnight) at home; OR 
Internationally – By either a 24 hour period free-from-duty while on layover at an International layover only (Section 12.K.) or by a calendar off at the home domicile.

• When moving a Reserve day to satisfy 1-in-7, the Flight Attendant may indicate which day she/he wants moved, and those days should be honored "if possible" (Section 10.D.2.b.).