Grievance Committee
Contact Grievance
MEC Grievance Chair Greg Riffle
griffle@nwaafa.org Or 952-241-4105
MEC Grievance Vice Chair Patti Reller
preller@nwaafa.org or 952-241-4109
MEC Grievance Member Kaki Androsiuk
kandrosiuk@nwaafa.org or 602-300-7989
General MEC Grievance Voice Mailbox: 866-795-4232 or 952-241-4100
LETTER OF AGREEMENT 35 UPDATE - DECEMBER 2008
As many of you know, the Pilots have been getting improvements in their contract with the Company that none of the other labor groups have. During bankruptcy, all employees were forced to take cuts to their pay and benefits in an equal proportion.
These forced cuts were supposed to be felt equally by all employees. Yet, we have seen that the Company, on more than one occasion, has improved the Pilots pay and benefits without giving the same to all the other employee groups. As such, we have been working with the IAM in preparation for arbitration with the Company to get our fare share of improvements. We will update you on the progress of this arbitration in the weeks to come.
PRE-BANKRUPTCY GRIEVANCE SETTLEMENT UPDATE - DECEMBER 2008
On November 19, 1008, the Bankruptcy Court’s approved the disbursement of money for certain pre-bankruptcy grievance settlements. The initial appropriation was approved by the Bankruptcy Court during bankruptcy. Our total sum was the same as ALPA and IAM. Some of these payouts will begin being paid to flight attendants with the December 12th paycheck. These payouts include:
*Individuals who paid more than $66 for Atlas who were on employment or furlough status as of December 22, 2005 and who remained employed on November 19, 2008; and
*A few individual grievance settlements.
In addition, those individuals who did not benefit from the original 70-75 hour Grievance Settlement Agreement will be made whole. If you were not on the Active List on July 31, 2008, you would not have been given the option of an additional 2 vacation days (either to use in 2009 or for cash payout). With the money set aside from the Bankruptcy Court, your AFA MEC is disbursing a cash equivalent of two (2) vacation days, at the appropriate individual hourly rate, to all those flight attendants who did not benefit from the Settlement Agreement. This will be paid out in the December 12th paycheck.
In addition, those individuals who worked 70 hours or more but less than 75 hours and experienced proration of sick and vacation during the August 2007 - February 2008 time period will be paid $16. That payment will be made in the December 26th paycheck.
Finally, the remaining money will be distributed equally to all flight attendants who were on payroll December 31, 2006 and who were still employed on November 19, 2008. This payment will made in the December 26th paycheck.
Posted by NWA Webmaster on 12/10 at 01:41 PMMEC Grievance Update 23SEP08
SEPTEMBER 23, 2008 - MEC GRIEVANCE COMMITTEE UPDATE
The MEC Grievance Committee would like to update you on a few issues which are of importance to everyone. First, you should know that a grievance initiated by LAX AFA Council 98 President Les Meeks was recently settled in favor of the Union. The grievance challenged the Companys recent change to the wording in the Flight Attendant manual in Sec. 120.10.10 regarding the responsibilities of all flight attendants in regards delivering UM/UADTs to a waiting adult in the gate area.
The Company had removed the word If from the beginning of that sentence, implying that it was now our specific responsibility to deliver UM/UADTs to an adult in the gate area, as well as check and verify identification in order to sign over the escorted party to a waiting adult. Indeed, in discussions with the Company over this issue, it was clear that their expectations had changed in regards to this issue.
The grievance charged the Company with a violation of our Section 1 Scope provisions by assigning additional duties to flight attendants off of the aircraft. In addition, as was discussed with the Company in settlement discussions, it is impractical, and almost impossible at best, to charge flight attendants with being solely responsible for the performance of these duties. Many times, our schedules prevent us from being able wait in a gate area till the responsible adults are identified, IDs checked, and paperwork signed off.
Eventually, the Company agreed with the Union position, and has agreed to re-insert the word IF back into the sentence in 120.10.10 as follows: If FA delivers UM/UADT to waiting adult. The impact of this is that the Companys expectation is that the flight attendant now has a choice of whether or not to deliver the UM/UADT to a waiting adult in the gate area, depending on whether or not your schedule permits you to engage in that activity. Many thanks are due AFA Council 98 LAX President Les Meeks for pursuing this issue.
In other areas of interest, you should also be aware that the AFA has filed an MEC grievance over the fact that Inflight managers are beginning to show up for trips and participate as a working crew member during the course of that trip. Of course, many of you know about Sr. VP Julie Showers recent trips. The Company, however, has decided to go beyond merely asking the Union to allow a senior management official the opportunity to see our workplace up close and personal.
NWA has now decided that it would be a good idea for a full range of upper Inflight management to come out and work on the carts with us. The problem with that idea is the fact that the managers are performing duties which are contractually reserved for flight attendants on the NWA AFA System Seniority list. The MEC grievance which was filed on September 3 of this year charges the Company with violating our Section 1 Scope provisions by allowing non-seniority list managers to perform flight attendant duties inflight and on-board the aircraft. We will keep you up-to-date on how this grievance progresses.
In other grievance related news, the AFA has scheduled an arbitration date with arbitrator Fred Horowitz on December 10th and 11th, in order to arbitrate the MEC grievance which was filed late last year alleging that the Letters of Agreement which NWA entered into with the ALPA in 2007 which resulted in among other things, increased pay for flying above 85 hours, constitute a violation of the AFA Letter of Agreement 35. LOA 35, which was LOA 29 in the Green Book, is essentially a Me-too agreement, which is to be used for the purpose of enabling the AFA to participate in any modifications of any other Union agreements on the NWA property which result in improvements to pay or working conditions which have the effect of reducing the Companys so- called take, or concessions, which are valued on an annual basis for each employee group.
This issue is fairly complex, so look for more updates in the future as we try to make clear the AFAs position in regards to this MEC grievance.
Printable version:
MEC_Grievance_Committee_Update_23SEP08.pdf