12.16.07 – (LAA) – Skyword, Resumes Being Accepted for Committee, Division Rep, and Nat Coordinator Positions

This is Leslie Mayo, National Communications Coordinator, with the APFA Hotline for Sunday, December 16, 2007.

Resumes are now being accepted for all Committee, Division Representative and National Coordinator Positions subject to appointment by the National Officers that will be elected by the membership shortly, for the next APFA administration beginning April 1, 2008. These positions include APFA’s National Coordinators, Division Representatives, Budget Committee and National Balloting Committee members and the two Specialists positions – Retirement and Employee Assistance Representative (EAR), which stem from the Contract and Health departments respectively. If you are interested in one of these positions, please forward your resume to APFA Secretary Greg Hildreth at APFA Headquarters, 1004 W. Euless Blvd., Euless, TX 76040. More information can be found in the next Skyword to be mailed at the end of December.

Lawsuit Update: Due to APFA members’ continued inquiries for more specific information concerning the consolidated lawsuit (Marcoux/Ford/Lindsay) filed against APFA following the 2003 RPA, a one-page summary of this case is now available at APFA’s web site on the left side of the site’s main page under the heading: Lawsuits. This document has been forwarded to all APFA InfoReps and APFA Leadership and is available for download by all members in good standing. It will also be available in the upcoming Skyword.

Recall Update: As we previously announced, 247 furloughed Flight Attendants were recalled this past week with a report date of March 25, 2008. Those eligible for recall will be given until 5:00 pm Central on Monday, December 17, 2007, in the event they had already planned to retire, so that those junior to them might have the chance to return to the line. Letters to those eligible for recall will be mailed next week and are due via Fed Ex no later than January 7, 2008, with a postmark of January 4, 2008. Base availability has not yet been finalized, however, AA anticipates that recalls will report to BOS, DCA or LGA. Continue to check APFA’s Web site for up-to-date Q&As on this subject.

Legislation Update: The Coalition of FA Unions is making a final push toward advancing the legislation that would mandate Family and Medical Leave benefits to all crewmembers. Many FAs working for other airlines today are not allowed time off to care for family members facing serious illness. Furthermore, these groups have not, as of yet, been successful in bargaining this right into the Contract unlike APFA members who are allowed to use both contractual and FML benefits.

Please visit APFA.org and clicking on the link on APFA’s homepage below “ACTION ALERT” entitled “Contact Congress.”

Management Intimidation: Last week Flight Service issued a “Holiday Intimidation Letter” to all Flight Attendants. It is clear that this letter was intended to frighten any APFA member who might be ill during the holidays to come to work, nevertheless, and possibly risk their own health as well as the health of coworkers and passengers. All of this, so that management can realize the success of their Holiday Plan within the 2007 “bare bones” operation they are attempting. This approach makes no logical sense and is another misguided attempt to manage by intimidation without thought to the potentially serious repercussions of these actions.

While APFA does not encourage anyone to use their sick time for anything other than its intended purpose, our members who are sick should not be intimidated into reporting to work while they are sick. This is not the first time management has issued what is known as a ‘blanket medical certificate’ to FAs on the sick list during a holiday period. APFA has learned from past arbitration rulings on this subject that management should treat each employee based on an individual’s sick leave record. If you are on the sick list over this holiday period and are contacted by management with demands to substantiate your illness or receive pressure to clear before you are healthy, please contact an APFA Base representative for assistance. The full text of the precedent-setting 2001 arbitration award on this specific issue is available on APFA’s Web site under Presidential Grievances then Arbitration Awards.

That’s it for this week. We still have 1,453 furloughed APFA members waiting to be recalled.

Thank you for calling the APFA Hotline.