21FEB08

MEC Meeting

Hi SFO,
The Regularly scheduled first quarter meeting of the MEC began to today in MSP.
I arrived in MSP a little late (late AC ...that #360 always a problem!) And by the time I got to room, returned some phone calls and finally turned on my computer I saw that the agenda had been sent to the Presidents as I was en route.
It was agreed to that for all future MEC meetings a copy of the advance agenda would be provided to the Counsels for distribution (which will hopefully elicit input from the membership) at least three- four days prior to the start of the meeting.
Please keep in mind that agendas tend to be rather fluid and late agenda items are just that ...Late .  
 
Joan Prince Crandall and Guy Meek came in to speak to a majority of the Local Council Presidents, MEC officers and various committee chairs.
I have their entire presentation and as soon as I am able to turn into a PDF I will forward that to you as well.
It was illuminating and very interesting to hear about the evolution of the Scope language, and the Language Protection Provisions afforded us in section one of our contract.
 
One thing we have to remember is we, as NWA flight attendants, have a contract and we have a union and when and IF a merger is announced
We do NOT lose either those the day a merger is announced.
 That is the time when (and the MEC officers and AFA legal must be prepared prior to the announcement) that our union will hold the company to the successor transaction language found in section One C 1. 
Please remind yourselves that a merger announcement has not been made...will it? Probably.
When, I don't know.
 
I am glad that I was one of the Presidents who took part in the dialogue today.
 I am so grateful that my base supported the decision to invite Joan and Guy to come and speak and I wish that the members of the two bases who made it clear to their Presidents that they should not be in the room when Joan and Guy made their presentation  would reconsider and allow their elected representatives to practice the inclusion that since July of 2007 we have been telling you is our objective.
 
I received a phone message from Danny Campbell last night. He said that he had a few concerns and offered to speak to the MEC about communications. I did not speak to Danny directly but I told the MEC about the message and Kevin, as he did with Joan and Guy, made contact with Danny and he will be speaking to the MEC tomorrow via conference call.
 
I was to be in an arbitration tomorrow regarding PDO replacement days unfortunately that arbitration has been postponed very temporarily. This was a grievance filed on behalf of the entire membership and there are a few SFO flight attendants who contributed to this becoming a reality...Thank you and you know who you are!
 
I will return phone calls as I and try to get to the computer at least two times a day.
Thank you for your patience and good night or rather good morning!
 
Kate
 
P.S. nominations for LEC officer positions for LEC 97 closed yesterday.
Results of the nominations will be counted and posted on 2/29/08
You may visit  www.afanet.org to see election schedules and nominations for all bases .

________________________________________________________________

27JAN08
Merger Committee Update
Hi SFO,
 
Just a brief update on the conference call that was held on Friday the 25th.
 
Kevin Griffin wanted to give an update about his conversation with Bob Brodine.
 
According to Mr. Brodine there are three reasons that NWA would consider consolidation or a merger with another airline.
 
l: Fuel prices have risen dramatically.
ll: Pressure from hedge fund holders. 
lll:The regulatory window is considered favorable during the current administration in Washington.
 
Mr. Brodine stated that while NWA would prefer to remain independent  that may not be possible. 
 
Mollie Riley and International Vice-President Veda Shook were present to give a general update on the Delta organizing campaign.
AFA is almost ready to "drop the cards' and call for a election but more mobilization and education is needed..
 
Legal Counsel David Borer added that "should Delta and NWA merge.".." it would trigger" the biggest election in the history of the airlines:." 
David Borer and the research staff at the International are in the process if putting together a Q&A and a compensation comparison chart for NWA flight attendants. 
 
I asked for another update on the 70 hour grievance. Briefs have been submitted by both AFA and NWA .We are now waiting for a decision from arbitrator Charlotte Gold.
  
Please take the time to read section One of our contract. If you do not have a copy visit www.sfo97.org  or www.nwaafa.org
to read one on-line. It is only2 1/2 pages long... you need to know what protections it gives us.
 
 It is my personal opinion that we need ALL the players in our history of mergers to come together and sit with this MEC to counsel and advise us on the process.
 
Below is a copy that I have sent to the MEC Presidents and officers regarding this subject.
 
Safe flying,
Kate
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Hi,
....... I feel that it is time to extend an invitation to all the merger-players from the past to come and give us a one-day seminar and provide an opportunity for us to ask questions about what we should know regarding section one/scope as well as provide us insight and direction for the coming months.
 
Barbara, Cathy, Mollie ,Bruce, and Lovey are all currently available to add input. I feel that it is foolish and shortsighted to not extend the invitation to Guy and Joan as well.
We have one chance to do this right and show our flight attendants that we all can work together. We can do it differently than it's been done before or we can repeat the mistakes born out of exclusion demonstrated by our fractured history.
 
All of these people bring lessons and insight that we can learn from.
 
I would like the MEC to extend an invitation to all of them to come and address us during the week of our MEC meeting or perhaps on Saturday the 23.
 
Sincerely,
 
Kate Day
President Local 97/SFO
kday@nwaafa.org

__________________________________________________________________

18JAN08

Merger Committee Update

Hi SFO,

This morning the MEC had another conference call.
(This one was concluded in an hour)

Present on the call were representatives from NYC, BOS, MEM, DTW, MSP, SEA SFO,and HNL.
The agenda consisted of two items.

1: Approval of a membership application letter to be sent to all flight attendants who are currently not members of AFA.
This letter includes a Q&A regarding waivers for application fee for flight attendants who worked for carriers previously represented by AFA, why membership is needed now ,voting privileges etc...
Letter's cost, including printing, to be paid by AFA International and sent directly to the homes of those flight attendants currently on record as "non-members".
Motion made,seconded and approved.

Agenda item 2;

Seniority verification committee.

This committee is to be a standing MEC committee ( similar to the seniority verification committee we had with the IBT and PFAA) whose sole purpose is to maintain a current and accurate seniority list.

Council 91,93, 94,95 and 97 made recommendations for this committee.

Three people were appointed with approval by a majority. Upon notification their names will be posted on the MEC website.

This committee is separate than the seniority integration committee AND the joint merger committee which will be needed should a merger or acquisition announcement ever be made.

Attached are some airline news clips from today's papers.

Now is the time to remain informed.

Fly safe,
Kate

__________________________________________________________________

16JAN08

Hi SFO,

Thank you for your ongoing involvement and  for continuing to stay educated. This email includes information discussed during yesterday's (Jan 15) MEC conference call. I welcome your feedback and hope those interested in joining the "seniority verification" committee will contact me ASAP (see below for committee description).

The agenda for the conference call was rather short but as usual, the call was long, lasting over four hours …

 Last November 2006 and January 2007 the need for a pre-merger/seniority committee was discussed and it was considered unnecessary and out of line with the AFA Constitution. Now, we are to come back to a conference call at 9am PST Jan 18 (Friday) and give our recommendations for this committee. Evidently, time is of the essence...

The MEC has decided to create a SENIORITY VERIFICATION committee. The purpose of this committee is to ensure that all flight attendant employee seniority numbers are accurate. Every month the company provides the MEC with a 23G report which we go over and make sure that anyone who has quit,was terminated or transferred to management has an accurate seniority number/date of hire/SIV date  etc...

If you look at the AFA Constitution and By-Laws (page 123, secion X. B and C.) there are specific seniority and merger committees that are formed once an announcement of a merger is made. If you do not have a constituion go to the website and look this section up.

This new committee is something of an unofficial pre-curser to those constitutional committees, SHOULD A MERGER become a reality. Please take into consideration there is as of today no merger announcement and I am not telling you that there will be one either.

 This is a three person committee. The MEC has decided (by a majority) to appoint these positions from the recommendations of the nine presidents rather than put an announcement out on the website requesting the general membership submit letters of interest.

( I know that two MEC Presidents had already contacted potential volunteers prior to the conference call).

There is nothing that indicates that this particular committee will or will not be morphed into the constitutional "seniority integration committee' and the constitutionally mandated" joint negotiating committee" but in my opinion I believe that some or all of these people will be moved over to these committees when and if a merger is announced. I would like see someone from SFO participate in this and for that I need to submit a name(s). 

So, is anyone interested??? I need to know by tomorrow night.

Right now the duties of the seniority verification committee would simply be to get together approximately once a month, review the seniority list and verify it .

David Borer and Bruce Retrum were on the call. They were invited by the President and Vice-President (Kevin Griffin and Albert Garcia) to help give some insight and background on the main topic of the call which was the Quality of Life items and discussions that have been held with the company. Below is a compilation of suggestions provided by Flight attendants.

Some of these items have been discussed with the company. In no way has anything like negotiating been happening.  Some of these suggestions, as you can well imagine, the company believes have a "cost" associated with them and they are forever reminding us that we have to stay within the $195,000,000. 


 Following the list are some items that the company has presented for possible discussion which they would give some "credit" for.

 The Items of Discussion:

1. Increase vacation accrual days 

2. Implementation of the 70 hour monthly minimum immediately. (This is in arbitration and we are waiting for the arbitrator's decision )...we could always decide to take a settlement prior to her decision. We are not at the moment considering that option.

3. Eliminate/reduce base and down line "sits" 

4. Increase minimum rest at layover stations while maintaining highest value of pattern

5. Across the board pay increase 

6. Time ands a half for hours between 80-100 to mirror pilots

7. Increase Sick Leave Accruals 

8. Remove Over-Fly / Under-Fly provisions for parity with pilots

9. Reinstate training pay 

10. Establish additional early-out program to offer lifetime pass privileges only

11.Improve pass privileges:   

    a. Eliminate requirement for employee to travel with companion

    b. Eliminate companion pass charge when using perfect attendance pass 

NWA proposed list for discussion:

1: decrease rest on flights (KIX winter only) in excess of 14 hours  

2: Foreign national options (THIS WAS UNANIMOUSLY VOTED DOWN AS SOMETHING THAT THE MEC WOULD NEVER CONSIDER AND THE NEGOTIATING COMMITTEE IS WELL AWARE OF THAT)

3:Eliminate contractual holiday Incentive plan

  a; Thanksgiving

  b. Christmas.

4: A dedicated domestic lead program 

5: Change Trip hour credit from 1-3:36 to 1-4:00 

The MEC decided to allow the negotiating committee to pursue discussions with the company and put together a "package"  for the MEC to consider.

I will tell you that I have gone on record as saying that any potential changes to the ratified agreement as a result of this package would , in my opinion, have to be voted on by the membership.

I promise you that when any "package" becomes available for review, I will make sure that SFO is apprised of the contents.

Bruce Retrum and James Yung are still working with Suzanne Balzer and Eric Edmundson  to finalize the proofreading necessary before the smaller version of the contract can be printed. After our last quarterly MEC meeting we were told that it would be available "hopefully" by Christmas or by the end of the year. A new release date has not been given.  

I will send out another email after the conference call on Friday.

Fly safe,

Kate

__________________________________________________________________

Hi SFO,

In a stunning déjà vu for those who were around for the concessionary contract in 1993, Northwest again reports strong financial results shortly after extracting significant concessions from its employees.

On Monday, Northwest announced the strongest operating quarter they've had in the past ten years, and the third highest in the history of the company.

While the corporation is outperforming its industry peers, Northwest employees are far from industry parity and continue to struggle under 40% reductions in wages, benefits and work rules. This is simply another example of a company exploiting and abusing its own people to augment the bottom line.

Northwest management is sadly mistaken if they believe that customer service training, incentive passes and buy on board commissions will provide their employees the money they need to put food on the table, pay the rent or provide for their families.

Sadly, this quarterly result proves, once again, the ruthlessness of Northwest management in extracting concessions from employees that we knew were overreaching from day one. Meanwhile, it appears that NWA executives have failed to adequately hedge fuel prices going forward and are now facing record setting oil prices.

Your Local council in SFO will continue to press for true profit sharing... a wage increase.
If this cannot be accomplished with the management we have now then perhaps it is time, once again, to call not only for Mr.Steenland's resignation, but for others who do not believe in rectifying the dismal relations with their employees they are responsible for.

Kate

__________________________________________________________________

Subject: Recent Campaign Email
Date: October 10, 2007

Hi SFO,

Recently I have received emails and calls from many of you who received an email masquerading as campaign material from Chris Joyce, the former grievance chair in DTW Council 94.

In response to your many valid and heartfelt concerns, I would like to reassure you that Mr. Joyce did not get your personal email addresses from our Local 97 email list. Local 97's bulk email list a PRIVATE list- purely voluntary.

Mr. Joyce, who is not even running for office in DTW, has resigned his appointed position.

I do not know how Mr. Joyce managed to obtain email addresses of so many of our active and former flight attendants, and I can't begin to imagine why the AFA logo was so misused or how the email appeared to be an official AFA mailing.

As many of you had said, union officials - elected or appointed - must be held to a higher standard. Your representative must project at all times objectivity, discretion and confidentiality. Free or "protected" speech ends where libel and slander begins, and for this disgraceful behavior I feel that I must apologize on behalf of my union colleagues and AFA.

__________________________________________________________________

Subject: SFO Base Meeting
Date: October 2, 2007

Hi SFO,
Your NWA MEC Vice-President Albert Garcia is going to try and be there.
Tom Geiman is out of town this week.
Please bring any questions you may have about the BOD agenda items or about the upcoming MEC meetings in Phoenix preceding the BOD as well.
I hope to see you there!
Kate

SFO BASE MEETING
WEDNESDAY OCTOBER 3, 2007
SFO INTERNATIONAL TERMINAL

10:00 AM -11:00AM

COFFEE AREA NEXT TO THE NWA TICKET COUNTERS AND ACROSS FROM THE SECURITY CHECK POINT FOR OUR GATES

AGENDA
MERGER WITH CWA?
DUES INCREASE?
READ  AFA 34th BOD Meeting information AND MAKE YOURSELF HEARD!!!!!!!

__________________________________________________________________

Subject: Inflight Services changes
Date: Wed, 19 Sep 2007 18:55:10 +0000


Hi SFO,

The below information was released on RADAR on Monday. Our MEC President, Kevin Griffin was advised shortly before the information was published.

The general consensus of those of you who have called and e-mailed has been that of SHOCK and OUTRAGE, especially for NWA to quote that Julie Hagen-Showers has a "strong working relationship" with the flight attendants and AFA.

Interested to note that the position has changed from Vice President to SENIOR Vice President. Wonder how much additional salary per year that involves?

I guess the next few months will be telling.

Fly safe,
Kate

__________________________________________________________________

Date: 30OCT07

Subject: MEC Update: Merger Committee/Quality of Life Discussions

Date: 16JAN08

Hi SFO,

Thank you for your ongoing involvement and  for continuing to stay educated. This email includes information discussed during yesterday's (Jan 15) MEC conference call. I welcome your feedback and hope those interested in joining the "seniority verification" committee will contact me ASAP (see below for committee description).

The agenda for the conference call was rather short but as usual, the call was long, lasting over four hours …

 Last November 2006 and January 2007 the need for a pre-merger/seniority committee was discussed and it was considered unnecessary and out of line with the AFA Constitution. Now, we are to come back to a conference call at 9am PST Jan 18 (Friday) and give our recommendations for this committee. Evidently, time is of the essence...

The MEC has decided to create a SENIORITY VERIFICATION committee. The purpose of this committee is to ensure that all flight attendant employee seniority numbers are accurate. Every month the company provides the MEC with a 23G report which we go over and make sure that anyone who has quit,was terminated or transferred to management has an accurate seniority number/date of hire/SIV date  etc...

If you look at the AFA Constitution and By-Laws (page 123, secion X. B and C.) there are specific seniority and merger committees that are formed once an announcement of a merger is made. If you do not have a constituion go to the website and look this section up.

This newcommittee is something of an unofficial pre-curser to those constitutional committees, SHOULD A MERGER become a reality. Please take into consideration there is as of today no merger announcement and I am not telling you that there will be one either.

 This is a three person committee. The MEC has decided (by a majority) to appoint these positions from the recommendations of the nine presidents rather than put an announcement out on the website requesting the general membership submit letters of interest.

( I know that two MEC Presidents had already contacted potential volunteers prior to the conference call).

There is nothing that indicates that this particular committee will or will not be morphed into the constitutional "seniority integration committee' and the constitutionally mandated" joint negotiating committee" but in my opinion I believe that some or all of these people will be moved over to these committees when and if a merger is announced. I would like see someone from SFO participate in this and for that I need to submit a name(s).

So, is anyone interested??? I need to know by tomorrow night.

Right now the duties of the seniority verification committee would simply be to get together approximately once a month, review the seniority list and verify it .

David Borer and Bruce Retrum were on the call. They were invited by the President and Vice-President (Kevin Griffin and Albert Garcia) to help give some insight and background on the main topic of the call which was the Quality of Life itemsand discussions that have been held with the company. Below is a compilation of suggestions provided by Flight attendants.

Some of these itemshave beendiscussed with the company. In no way has anything like negotiating been happening. Some of these suggestions, as you can well imagine, the company believes have a "cost" associated with them and they are forever reminding us that we have to stay within the $195,000,000.

 Followingthe list are some items that the company has presented for possiblediscussion which they would give some "credit" for.

The Items of Discussion:

 
1. Increase vacation accrual days
 
2. Implementation of the 70 hour monthly minimum immediately. (This is in arbitration and we are waiting for the arbitrator's decision )...we could always decide to take a settlement prior to her decision. We are not at the moment considering that option.
 
3. Eliminate/reduce base and down line "sits"
 
4. Increase minimum rest at layover stations while maintaining highest value of pattern
 
5. Across the board pay increase
 
6. Time ands a half for hours between 80-100 to mirror pilots
 
7. Increase Sick Leave Accruals
 
8. Remove Over-Fly / Under-Fly provisions for parity with pilots
 
9. Reinstate training pay
 
10. Establish additional early-out program to offer lifetime pass privileges only
 
11.Improve pass privileges:
   
    a. Eliminate requirement for employee to travel with companion
 
    b. Eliminate companion pass charge when using perfect attendance pass
 
NWA proposed list for discussion:
 
1: decrease rest on flights (KIX winter only) in excess of 14 hours 
 
2: Foreign national options (THIS WAS UNANIMOUSLY VOTED DOWN AS SOMETHING THAT THE MEC WOULD NEVER CONSIDER AND THE NEGOTIATING COMMITTEE IS WELL AWARE OF THAT)
 
3:Eliminate contractual holiday Incentive plan
  a; Thanksgiving
  b. Christmas.
 
4: A dedicated domestic lead program
 
5: Change Trip hour credit from 1-3:36 to 1-4:00
 
 
The MEC decided to allow the negotiating committee to pursue discussions with the company and put together a "package"  for the MEC to consider.
I will tell you that I have gone on record as saying that any potential changes to the ratified agreement as a result of this package would , in my opinion, have to be voted on by the membership.
I promise you that when any "package" becomes available for review, I will make sure that SFO is apprised of the contents.
 
 
Bruce Retrum and James Yung are still working with Suzanne Balzer and Eric Edmundson  to finalize the proofreading necessary before the smaller version of the contract can be printed. After our last quarterly MEC meeting we were told that it would be available "hopefully" by Christmas or by the end of the year. A new release date has not been given.
 
I will send out another email after the conference call on Friday.
 
Fly safe,
Kate

__________________________________________________________________

Subject: NWA Q3 Profits Prove Concessions are Excessive

Date: 30OCT07

Subject: NWA Q3 Profits Prove Concessions are Excessive