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Contract Section Drop Down Menu Contract Index Sec 1 SCOPE AND JOB SECURITY Sec 2 DEFINITIONS Sec 3 COMPENSATION Sec 4 EXPENSES Sec 5 HOURS OF SERVICE Sec 6 SCHEDULING Sec 7 RESERVES Sec 8 INTERNATIONAL Sec 9 PURSER Sec 10 VACATIONS Sec 11 TRAINING Sec 12 FILLING OF VACANCIES Sec 13 TRANSFER EXPENSES Sec 14 REDUCTION IN FORCE & RECALL Sec 15 SICK LEAVE Sec 16 OCCUPATIONAL INJURY Sec 17 MEDICAL EXAMINATIONS Sec 18 LEAVES OF ABSENCE Sec 19 UNIFORMS Sec 20 SENIORITY Sec 21 PERSONNEL RELATED MATTERS Sec 22 SAFETY AND HEALTH Sec 23 UNION ACTIVITIES Sec 24 UNION SHOP & DUES CHECK-OFF Sec 25 GENERAL Sec 26 MISSING,PRISONER OF WAR Sec 27 GRIEVANCE PROCEDURE Sec 28 SYSTEM BOARD OF ADJUSTMENT Sec 29 INSURANCE BENEFITS Sec 30 RETIREMENT PLAN AGREEMENT Sec 31 EFFECT OF AGREEMENT Sec 32 AMENDMENT OF AGREEMENT Sec 33 EFFECTIVE DATE & DURATION LETTERS OF AGREEMENT Letter 1 Operating MAC (AMC) Flights Letter 2 REVISED PASS TRAVEL DATE FOR PRE-MERGER NORTHWEST FLIGHT ATTENDANTS Letter 3 ADJUSTMENT OF PRE-MERGER FLIGHT ATTENDANT LONGEVITY DATES Letter 4 FLIGHT ATTENDANT AIRCRAFT TIDYING RESPONSIBILITIES Letter 5 PARENT COMPANY Letter 6 FOREIGN NATIONAL FLIGHT ATTENDANTS Letter 7 INTERPRETER DUTIES-INTERNATIONAL FLIGHTS Letter 8 INTERPRETER DUTIES-DOMESTIC FLIGHTS Letter 9 PURSER QUALIFICATION CRITERIA Letter 10 NORTHWEST AIRLINES PROFIT SHARING PLAN Letter 11 SMALL JETS (77 - 110 SEATS) Letter 12 JFK/LGA/EWR CO-TERMINALS Letter 13 SLIC Letter 14 CRITICAL BID PROCESS Letter 15 PREFERENTIAL BIDDING SYSTEM Letter 16 LANGUAGE OF DESTINATION Letter 17 TIME AVAILABLE DURING CRITICAL PERIOD Letter 18 CHARTERS ON RECONFIGURED AIRCRAFT Letter 19 LEAD POSITION BIDDING Letter 20 SATELLITE BASE FLYING Letter 21 SPLIT LINES PROGRAM Letter 22 CONTRACT AUTOMATION TIMELINE Letter 23 MAINTAINING PURSER QUALIFICATIONS Letter 24 EARLY OUT / SEVERANCE PROGRAM Letter 25 COMMUTER TRAVEL ADJOINING SK Letter 26 INTEROFFICE COMMUNICATIONS Letter 27 UNION ACCESS TO NWA COMPUTER SYSTEM Letter 28 LOCKED STOWAGE SPACE Letter 29 JUMPSEAT RECIPROCITY Letter 30 MSP COMMUTER POLICY Letter 31 INVESTIGATION PROTOCOLS Letter 32 ARBITRATION PROTOCOLS Letter 33 GRIEVANCE MEDIATION Letter 34 BANKRUPTCY PROTECTION Letter 35 CONDITIONS AND COVENANTS Letter 36 FLIGHTPAC CONTRIBUTIONS Letter 37 EFFECTIVE DATE AND DURATION Letter 38 BIRTHDAY HOLIDAY AND VACATION BIDDING Letter 39 BASE TRANSFERS Letter 40 AMC/CRAF FLYING Letter 41 SPLIT LINE PROGRAM APPENDIX

LEGAL REFERENCES

Railway Labor Act

National Mediation Board

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PDF Version of Contract Here

SENIORITY CHALLENGE

The twice yearly contractual seniority list run was completed on 26JUL10. If you believe there is an error, omission or incorrect posting which affected your seniority, per Section 20 – Seniority of our contract you have sixty (60) days to submit a written inquiry/challenge to the new list. The deadline for submitting a protest will be September 24, 2010. Please submit written inquiries to:
Dustin Ray
Analyst – Operations & Planning
Department 606
1010 Delta Boulevard
OC-1 Building, 5th Floor
Atlanta, GA 30354

RELATED SECTION LINKS

Allegheny-Mohawk Merger

Print Just Section 20

Section 20 Contract in PDF form

Contract Notes




Contract Section History

• NWA Seniority List July 2008

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NWA AFA CWA CONTRACTS

• Contract Link
• Contract History

SECTION 20

SENIORITY

A.    Accrual of Seniority

1.    For Pay and Longevity

Seniority for pay and longevity shall begin to accrue from the date a Flight Attendant is first placed on the payroll in a position covered by this Agreement, or a previous Agreement covering the same bargaining unit as recognized under the provisions of the Railway Labor Act and the rules of the National Mediation Board, and shall continue to accrue until the Flight Attendant is terminated, resigns, or retires, unless terminated or interrupted as otherwise provided in this Agreement.

2.    For Bidding Purposes and Travel

Seniority for bidding purposes and pass travel shall begin to accrue from the date a Flight Attendant commences initial training, provided such training is successfully completed and shall continue to accrue unless interrupted as otherwise provided in this Agreement.

3.    Governance of System Seniority

Subject to the other terms of this Agreement, a Flight Attendant's system seniority shall govern the following situations:

a.    Retention in case of reduction in force as provided in Section 14;

b.    Bidding for and/or awarding of monthly bid lines as provided for in Section 6;

c.    Recall from furlough as provided in Section 14;

d.    Bidding for and/or selection of lines in case of a rebid at a base as provided for in Section 6;

e.    Choice of vacancies, provided the Flight Attendant's qualifications are sufficient for the operation to which he/she is to be assigned. In the event a Flight Attendant is considered by the Company not to be sufficiently qualified, the Company, shall, on written request, furnish such Flight Attendant with written reasons thereof;

f.     Assignment or reassignment due to expansion or reduction in schedules; and

g.    Bidding for and/or awarding of vacation as provided for in Section 10.

B.    System Seniority List

1.    Posting of Flight Attendant System Seniority List

Semi-annually, no later than January 31 and July 31, respectively, the Company shall issue and post an updated "Flight Attendant System Seniority List" effective the date posted. The list shall include each Flight Attendant’s new system seniority number, former system seniority number, name, employee number, seniority date, date of hire, SIV date, longevity date and adjusted date of hire, when applicable. The list shall be made available to Flight Attendants in CENTRY, ATLAS (in PDF format) or the Company’s designated automated system. Whenever the names of new Flight Attendants are added to the seniority list, a copy of the page(s) of the list reflecting such additions shall be posted at each base and an electronic copy to the MEC President and to each LEC President.

2.    Challenge of System Seniority List

Flight Attendants shall be allowed a maximum period of sixty (60) days after the electronic posting of both the January 31 and the July 31 lists to file a written protest with the Vice President Inflight Services, or his/her designee, setting forth the specifics of any error, omission or incorrect posting which affected their seniority.

Failure to protest to the Company any such alleged omission or incorrect posting within sixty (60) days after the issuing or posting of the seniority list upon which the alleged omission or incorrect posting initially appeared shall preclude a Flight Attendant from protesting same, except that when a Flight Attendant is on vacation, leave of absence, flight duty away from base or sick leave, such Flight Attendant shall protest any alleged omission or incorrect posting within sixty (60) days after the return to flight duty at his/her base. In the event more than one (1) Flight Attendant is employed on the same day, they shall appear on the seniority list as determined by their birthdates. Seniority lists shall only include Flight Attendants in such classifications who are covered by this Agreement and shall not cover foreign national employees assigned to flights pursuant to paragraph B. of Section 1 of this Agreement. A Flight Attendant may file only one (1) protest over the same issue.

3.    Flight Attendant System Seniority List – Other

In the event Northwest Airlines, Inc. purchases, absorbs or merges with another airline, or disposes of its operations as a whole, the Flight Attendant System Seniority List of Northwest Airlines, Inc. and of the other company or companies involved, shall at such time be determined by agreement between the representatives of the respective Flight Attendant groups involved, and the Company's recommendations shall be considered.

C.    Retention and Loss of Seniority

1.    Transfer to Positions Within the Inflight Services Department

a.    A Flight Attendant transferring or who has in the past transferred to a position(s) within the Inflight Services Department outside the coverage of this Agreement shall retain and accrue seniority during the entire period of service in such position(s) through December 31, 1989. Thereafter, Flight Attendants who occupy or transfer to such position(s) shall retain but not accrue seniority while occupying such position(s), except as described in subparagraph 1.b., below. This paragraph shall not operate to restore seniority to any person who lost his/her seniority prior to February 21, 1984.

b.    A Flight Attendant transferring to a position within the Inflight Services Department shall, if he/she returns to line Flight Attendant status within three hundred and sixty-five (365) days of first occupying the management position, have his/her seniority reinstated as though he/she had not transferred.

2.    Transfer to Positions Outside the Inflight Services Department

a.    A Flight Attendant transferring to a position(s) outside the Inflight Services Department shall retain seniority for a period of one (1) year of "continuous service" in such position(s) after which he/she shall lose all seniority with the exception of subparagraph 2.b., below. A period of service shall be deemed “continuous service” until it is broken by a transfer back to the position of Flight Attendant:

(1) For a period of at least twelve (12) months; and

(2) The Flight Attendant has performed at least six hundred hours (600:00) of active duty within any rolling twelve (12) month period.

b.   A Flight Attendant who has been involuntarily furloughed in accordance with Section 14 of this Agreement shall continue to retain and accrue seniority while working in a position outside the Inflight Services Department in a position covered by a collective bargaining agreement as long as the Flight Attendant has not subsequently declined recall to the Flight Attendant position in accordance with Section 14.D. of this Agreement.

c.    A Flight Attendant transferring to a position outside the Inflight Services Department on account of physical incapacity, illness or injury shall retain and accrue seniority for a period of five (5) years of “continuous” service in such position after which he/she shall lose all seniority. A period of service shall be deemed "continuous service" until it is broken by a transfer back to the position of Flight Attendant:

(1) For a period of at least nine (9) months; and

(2) The Flight Attendant has performed at least four hundred and fifty hours (450:00) of active duty within any rolling nine (9) month period.

D.    Special Assignment Flight Attendant (SAFA) Positions

1.    Flight Attendants may be assigned on a voluntary basis, to a position outside the definition of Flight Attendant, as defined in Section 2.HH. of this Agreement.

2.    Special Assignment Flight Attendant (SAFA) positions shall include:

a.    Inflight Recruiter

b.    Flight Attendant Training Curriculum Developer

c.    Initial Training Instructor

d.    Probationary Training Instructor

e.    ART Instructor

f.     Flight Attendant Service Seminar Instructor

g.    Other Airline Flight Attendant Training Instructor

h.    PBS Central

i.      Flight Attendant Communication Center Positions

j.      Inflight Procedure Development and Test Support

k.    Publicity Assignments

NOTE: Within six (6) months of the effective date of this Agreement, the Company shall provide the MEC President with a functional job description for the SAFA positions noted in paragraphs 2.a. through 2.j., above. The Company and the Union shall then meet in a good faith effort to resolve any issues or concerns arising from any of the job descriptions.

3.    All positions not covered by subparagraph D.2., above, must be approved in writing by the MEC President before the provisions of paragraph D. of this Section shall apply. Company requests for such positions must be in writing and accompanied by a functional job description and the requested duration of the assignment. If approved, the MEC President retains the right to cancel such positions upon forty-five (45) days advance written notice to the Vice President Inflight Services, or his/her designee.

4.    A Flight Attendant transferring to a special assignment position which involves more than forty hours (40:00) of special assignment pay and credit per month shall retain and accrue seniority for a period of one (1) year in such position. Thereafter he/she shall retain but not accrue seniority unless the special assignment is broken by a transfer back to line flying:

a.    For a period of at least two (2) months; and

b.    The Flight Attendant has performed at least one hundred hours (100:00) of active duty within any rolling two (2) month period.

NOTE: A month in which a Flight Attendant receives forty hours (40:00) or less of special assignment pay and credit shall not be considered as one of the months towards the one (1) year special assignment limit cited in subparagraph D.4., above, or the five (5) year special assignment limit cited in subparagraph D.5., below. Such month shall be treated as a month of line flying, except that the special assignment pay and credit shall not be counted towards the one hundred hours (100:00) of active duty cited in subparagraph D.4., above, or the three hundred hours (300:00) of active duty cited in subparagraph D.5., below.

5.    The provisions of subparagraph D.4., above, shall not apply to ART Instructors or to Flight Attendants serving in a PBS capacity. A Flight Attendant serving in one of these positions which involves more than forty hours (40:00) of special assignment pay and credit per month shall retain and accrue seniority for a period of five (5) years. Thereafter, he/she shall retain but not accrue seniority unless the PBS or ART assignment is broken by a transfer back to line flying:

a.    For a period of at least six (6) months, and

b.    The Flight Attendant has performed at least three hundred hours (300:00) of active duty within any rolling six (6) month period.

6.    Other exceptions to subparagraph D.4., above, may be granted in writing on a case by case basis by the MEC President. Company requests for such extensions must also be in writing.

7.    During the period that a Flight Attendant serves in a special assignment position (SAFA) with the Company, he/she:

a.    Shall not be assigned as a working member of the Flight Attendant crew, except under emergency circumstances to meet FAA minimum crew requirements;

b.    Shall not be assigned to have responsibility for taking disciplinary action against Flight Attendants but:

(1) May perform quality assurance rides on probationary Flight Attendants;

(2) May provide the Company with reports or information regarding the performance of individual probationary Flight Attendants. It is understood, however, that such reports will not be used as cause for any disciplinary action or termination.

c.    Must comply with the provisions of Section 24 of this Agreement as a condition of retaining and accruing seniority.

8.    The Company shall determine how many hours of credit to apply to each SAFA up to a maximum of one hundred and ten hours (110:00) per month, each hour to be paid at the Flight Attendant’s hourly incentive rate of pay. SAFA shall not be eligible for other Flight Attendant pay premiums or Flight Attendant per diem as part of their SAFA assignment. SAFA credit hours shall count towards monthly flight time limits.

E.    Return to Flight Attendant Position

A Flight Attendant in a position with the Company outside the coverage of this Agreement shall at his/her option, during the period while he/she retains seniority, be permitted to return to the position of Flight Attendant by exercising his/her seniority at the base station at which he/she had last been assigned as a Flight Attendant. If the Flight Attendant's seniority is insufficient to hold a Flight Attendant position at his/her former base or if that base has been closed, the Flight Attendant shall be permitted to exercise his/her seniority on the system.

F.    Loss of Seniority

A Flight Attendant shall lose his/her seniority and his/her employment with the Company shall be terminated if he/she:

1.    Quits or resigns;

2.    Is discharged for just cause;

3.    Retires;

4.    Is on furlough status for sixty (60) consecutive months; or

5.    Is on furlough status and fails to respond to recall or fails to return to service pursuant to the provisions of Sections 12 and 14 of this Agreement.

G.   Period of Probation

1.    Flight Attendants shall be considered as probationary employees for the first (1st) six (6) months of actual service as a Flight Attendant except,

a.    If, during his/her probationary period, a Flight Attendant is on paid or unpaid leave in excess of fourteen (14) consecutive calendar days, his/her probationary period shall be extended by the total number of consecutive days on leave.

b.    The probationary period shall be extended by one (1) month if a Flight Attendant via Letter of Preference is awarded a permanent base transfer, as provided in Section 12.C.

2.    During the period of probation, a Flight Attendant shall not be permitted to:

a.    Engage in mutual pattern or line trades with a Flight Attendant from another base;

b.    Serve the Company in any position not covered by this Agreement;

c.    Serve the Company in a special assignment position as provided in paragraph D. of this Section without prior approval by the MEC President, or his/her designee.

H.    Monthly Reports

The Company shall provide the MEC President with a monthly updated list of Flight Attendants who occupy or transfer to SAFA positions in the Inflight Services Department or any other department within the Company. Such list shall include dates of hire, dates of transfer and positions held.