2017 Vacation Bidding
Bidding for 2017 vacations will following Section 18.E of the 2012-2016 Collective Bargaining Agreements. The dates are as follows:
Primary Vacation Bid Period
- Begins 0830 October 29
- Closes 0830 November 7
- Post primary vacation awards 0830 November 12
Secondary Vacation Bid Period
- Begins 0830 November 16
- Closes 0830 November 23
- Post secondary vacation awards 0830 November 28
Tertiary Vacation Bid Period
- Begins 0830 December 1
- Closes 0830 December 7
- Post tertiary vacation awards 0830 December 11
Vacation Accrual While on Occupational Injury or Illness
The Company and the Union have agreed to settle MEC 1-14 regarding vacation accrual while on Occupational Illness or Injury Leave.
Occupational Leave of Absence (L9 status)
Flight Attendants on Occupational Leave of Absence (L9 status) for any time during the 2016 vacation accrual period who have previously been made whole when the vacations days to which they were entitled during this accrual period were manually added to their 2016 vacations. These Flight Attendants did not experience a vacation reduction and were provided the opportunity to bid their Contractual vacation periods.
Flight Attendants who were on Occupational Leave of Absence (L9 status) at any time during the period from January 13, 2013 through August 28, 2014 (which encompassed the vacation accrual periods for 2014 & 2015 vacations) will be made whole. These individuals will receive a dollar amount payment equal to the dollar value of the vacation period plus, as a separate payment, the value that dollar amount would have contributed to Profit Sharing distributions. The payment for vacation time will be considered as “qualifying earnings” for the purpose of contributions to the 401(k) account while the payment for the Profit Sharing will not be considered as qualifying earnings.
The dollar amount payment will be calculated by multiplying the number of hours of vacation due by the hourly rate of pay in effect as of December 31, 2015. The settlement payment will be made prior to October 31, 2016 and will be identified on the pay advices of the affected Flight Attendants in two ways. The value of the vacation will be identified as “Settlement Elig” and the value for the Profit Sharing will be identified as “Settlement Non Elig”. Payment will be issued on an “off cycle” check (not a regular pay check.) prior to October 31, 2016.
Flight Attendants at International domiciles (FRA, HKG, LHR & NRT) who were impacted by the Settlement of the grievance received, on their October mid-month paycheck, an amount identified on the Pay Advice as “Retro”. A correction will be made to convert this previous “Retro” payment to a “Settlement Elig” payment. In addition, these same Flight Attendants at International domiciles will receive an additional payment equal to the value the dollar amount of the vacation payment that would have been contributed to the Profit Sharing distribution. This payment will be reflected as “Settlement – Non Elig”. Flight Attendants at International domiciles will see these entries on their November 1, 2016 Pay Advice.
Extended Occupational Illness or Injury (S2 status)
Flight Attendants who had accepted Occupational illness or injury claims who elected to supplement their Total Temporary Disability (TTD) payment with hours from their sick leave bank and who did not accumulate 97:30 of paid activity in the vacation accrual quarter(s) while supplementing their TTD with sick leave, are not included in this settlement. (Section 18.B.2. of the 2012-2016 Contract)
Going Forward - Important Considerations when on an Occupational Illness
As a result of the Settlement of MEC 1-14, it is critical for Flight Attendants to understand the choices you will be required to make if you are not flying as a result of an injury or illness on the job. The choices you make about your leave status and how you are paid may impact your vacation accrual.
If you are injured on the job and your occupational claim is accepted, our 2016 – 2021 Contract provides you with the following options:
You may remain on active status and supplement your TTD payment with hours from your sick leave bank.
You may begin an Occupational Leave of Absence (L9 status) where you agree to receive only the value of your TTD payment.
Option #1 - Supplementing your TTD Payment with Sick Leave Hours
When supplementing your TTD with hours from your sick leave bank, you have three (3) options:
Bid a line of flying, or
Select a 71-hour monthly minimum, or
Select a 100-hour monthly maximum.
In either of these three options, the difference between the dollar value of the awarded line, or the 71-hour minimum, or 100-hour maximum and your TTD payment will be converted into hours, posted in your DFAP and paid from your sick leave bank. When selecting this option, if you do not accumulate 120 hours or more of paid activity during the quarter in which you are supplementing from your sick leave bank, you will not receive a full accrual of vacation for that quarter. (60 hours of paid activity for ½ vacation.) In this instance, vacation lost will not be restored.
Flight Attendants who elect to supplement their TTD with sick leave may have their vacation accrual reduced as provided in Section 12.A.2. of the Contract.
Option #2 - Occupational Leave of Absence Status
You may elect to begin an Occupational Leave of Absence – (L9 status). This is a leave of absence status where you will receive full vacation accrual during the period of leave. What must be clearly understood is that the Occupational Leave of Absence may not exceed three (3) years. Flight Attendants who exhaust the three (3) year leave period and who are unable to return to active service will be administratively separated or, if eligible, retired.
All questions relative to this award are to be directed to the Union by e-mail at MEC114@unitedafa.org. This is the exclusive method by which all inquiries will be processed.
Open Enrollment Closes October 28 - Make Your Selections
You can now make your selection for healthcare during the 2017 Open Enrollment (which is currently ongoing for active employees now through next Friday, October 28th, 2016). Retirees open enrollment dates are October 31, 2016 through November 11, 2016. It is important to go online to United’s Your Benefits Resources (YBR) site 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.
For additional information please 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.
Councils 42 and 64 Nominations and Elections Timeline
Councils 42 and 64 IAH.
Per Section 10 E of the AFA Constitution & Bylaws nominations and elections will be conducted where there are duplicate United Airlines Local Councils/bases. The Category III term of office begins on January 1, 2017 and ends June 30, 2019. Officers to be elected: LEC President, LEC Vice President, LEC Secretary and 2 Council Representatives.
As an active member in good standing, you have the right to nominate candidates for office, to run for office and to cast a secret ballot.
Nominations and elections are governed by procedures outlined in the Association’s Constitution & Bylaws, Article VIII and the AFA Policy Manual.
ELIGIBILITY
In order to participate in the nomination and election process a Flight Attendant must be an Active Member in Good Standing.
This means you must not be on a leave of absence, you must be a current member of the Association of Flight Attendants and your AFA account should be in good standing (no delinquent union dues).
For those who are on probation, your probation end date must be on the count date or before in order to participate in the nomination or election process.
TWO-STEP NOMINATION & ELECTION PROCESS
Nominations
The first step in the process is nominating candidates for each office. Every active AFA member in good standing is eligible to nominate one Flight Attendant to each LEC Office for their respective Local Council. There is no candidate list provided for Nominations since any active AFA member of the Local Council, who is in good standing and is committed to serve, is eligible to be nominated.
You will receive a Voting Notice and Instructions guide via postal mail which includes a personal 16-digit activation code that is required to log into the voting system in order to obtain a username and password. You will then be able to access the balloting section and cast your vote. The entire process can only be accomplished via the internet in one session, but please ensure you completely follow the instructions.
Elections
The next step in the process is electing those members who have committed to serve the membership and received at least two nomination votes. Each member in good standing is eligible to vote for one candidate for each LEC Office.
You will receive the Voting Notice & Instructions along with a Voting Guide listing the candidates running for each office. This mailing will include a new personal 16-digit activation code, and similar to the Nomination process, it will allow you to access the voting system via phone or internet to obtain a username and password and cast your ballot. Due to account security requirements you are issued a new 16-digit activation code for each election.
COMMITMENT TO SERVE
Each member who receives at least two nominations and who intends on running for office must complete a Commitment to Serve form. This form is found on the AFA Election website:
www.afacwa-elections.org
ELECTION WEBSITE
The AFA Election website contains information regarding the voting process, eligibility to vote and step-by-step guides and videos. The official certified results for each nomination and election will be posted on this site under the specific Council’s page.
IAH NOMINATION SCHEDULE:
Mail Date: 10-18-16 Voting Notices are mailed to each member. This contains your personal 16-digit activation code.
POLLS OPEN: 10-20-16 12:00 PM EDT. The polls are open and voting begins.
POLLS CLOSE: 11-09-16 1:00 PM EDT. The polls close and the count takes place.
IAH ELECTION SCHEDULE:
Mail Date: 11-29-16 Voting Notice & Voting Guides are mailed. This contains your personal 16-digit activation code.
POLLS OPEN: 12-1-16. 12:00 PM EST. The polls are open and voting begins.
POLL CLOSE: 12-21-16. 1:00 PM EST. The polls close and the count takes place.
Understanding 5 for 1
At a Company request a Flight Attendant may concur to extend the duty time provisions of Section 12.L. to the F.A.R. duty time maximum.
- Once a Flight Attendant has concurred to extend her/his duty time maximum, she/he shall be guaranteed a minimum of one hour of pay at five (5) times her/his hourly rate in addition to her/his actual credited time for the ID. Every hour or portion thereof in excess of the first hour shall be paid at five (5) times her/his actual hourly rate.
- Such compensation is for pay purposes only and may not be used to offset any other guarantees. The Company is prohibited from negotiating with Flight Attendants for any compensation or incentive to obtain a Flight Attendant concurrence.
- In the application of Paragraph 5. above, it is agreed by the parties that the FAR Scheduled Duty Time maximum of twenty (20) hours shall be applied as the maximum for flights operating under 12.L.2.
- Flights falling under the maximums outlined in Section 12.L.3. and 4. of the Agreement shall be restricted to a two (2) hour additional extension.
That's all for today. Fly safe!
Franko, Jarrett, Jason. | 