8.16.16 – (LAA/LUS) – Supplemental Hard 40 Q & A’s

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Tuesday, August 16, 2016

 

In addition to the original Q & A’s on the Hard 40 Agreement released last week, we will be adding the following supplemental Q & A’sto the APFA website in response to trending questions received by Contract & Scheduling Reps:

Scheduling

Q1: Will I lose the ability to trade and drop trips to other Flight Attendants?
A: No.
You will continue to have the ability to trade and drop trips to other Flight Attendants. The only difference is that you will be able to trade down or drop below 40 hours.
(See the Scheduling section of the original Q&A’s for more information).
 
Q2: How many hours will be counted toward my thresholds in a reserve month?
A: Your monthly guarantee or total flight paid hours, whichever is greater, will be counted toward your thresholds, provided that month is an active month.
 
Example 1 (Reserve Guarantee = 75 paid hours)
Reserve Flight Attendant Jones worked 50 hours of Company assigned reserve trips. Even though she only flew 50 hours, the Company will credit her guarantee (75 paid hours) toward her thresholds.
 
Example 2 (Reserve Guarantee = 75 paid hours)
Reserve Flight Attendant Lin worked 70 hours of Company assigned reserve trips and picked up a 15 hour 3-day trip on his days off. In this case, the Company will credit 90 paid hours toward Flight Attendant Lin’s thresholds (75 hours guarantee + 15 hours above guarantee= 90 hours).
 
Example 3 (Reserve Guarantee = 75 paid hours)
Reserve Flight Attendant Vasquez is assigned a 15 hour 3-day trip. She then drops the same trip on the Electronic Trade Board, reducing her guarantee by the value of the trip (15 hours) to 60 paid hours (75 – 15).
 
Even if Flight Attendant Vasquez ends the bid month with less than 60 hours of Company assigned reserve trips, the Company would apply her reduced guarantee of 60 hours toward her thresholds.
 
 
Active vs Inactive Months
 
Q1: Are paid but unworked hours counted toward the thresholds?
A: Yes.
All paid hours in an active month will be counted toward the sick and vacation and employment thresholds. Paid but unworked hours include but are not limited to: vacation, jury duty, paid sick, and paid FMLA.
(See Q2 and Q3 of the Active vs Inactive Months section of the original Q&As for more information).
 
 
Q2: Will I be considered unavailable to the Company on days off that fall in-between unpaid absences?
A: Yes, the determination of available and unavailable days in a contractual month is the same as in the JCBA.
 
Q3: What would be my personal sick and vacation accrual threshold if I am on an educational leave for part of the year?
A: An educational leave is an unpaid absence. When you are on an unpaid absence, you are not considered available to the Company. When you are not available to the Company for at least fifteen (15) days in a contractual month, that month is considered an inactive month. An inactive month will reduce your threshold by 35 paid hours (under the 420 hour requirement) or 40 paid hours (under the 480 hour requirement).
 
Example (420 requirement)
Flight Attendant was on educational leave for 9 months.
 
Total Number of Inactive Months = 9
Total Number of Active Months = 3
Flight Attendant’s Personal Sick & Vacation Threshold = 105 paid hours (3 active months x 35 paid hours).
 
Therefore, so long as the Flight Attendant’s total paid hours meets or exceeds 105 hours at the end of the year, she/he will accrue 3 months of sick and vacation benefits.
(See Q3 of the Active vs Inactive Months section of the original Q&As for more information).
 
 
Employment Threshold
 
Q1: What is my personal employment threshold if I am inactive for part of the year?
A: See chart below:-

 
Q2: What would be my personal employment threshold if I am on an unpaid sick absence for the entire calendar year?
A: Your personal employment threshold would be zero (0) hours. Therefore, you will not need to be paid any hours in such a year to maintain employment.
(See Q3 of the Active vs Inactive Months section of the original Q&As for more information).
 
Q3: In which instance would the Company consider the paid hours earned in my inactive months to determine if I have satisfied my personal employment threshold?
A: If the total paid hours in your active months does not equal your personal employment threshold at the end of the year, the Company will add all hours paid above 40 in your inactive months to your total paid hours in your active months in an attempt to bring you up to your personal employment threshold.
 
 
Consider the following Flight Attendant’s summary activity report for a given year:
January – September: Inactive (returned September 20^th and the flew the remainder of the month but was only available for 10 calendar days)
 
 
October – December: Active
 
Number of Active Months = 3
Flight Attendant’s Employment Threshold = 60 paid hours (3 active months x 20 paid hours)
 
Active Months Breakdown by Paid Hours:
October = 0
November = 35
December = 20
Total = 55 (Flight Attendant is short by 5 hours)
 
Inactive Months Breakdown by Paid Hours:
January – August = 0
September = 45 (5 hours above 40)
 
Company’s Consideration Exception: Add the 5 hours above 40 from September’s inactive month to the 55 paid hours in the active months to bring the Flight Attendant up to her personal employment threshold of 60 paid hours. With this addition, the Flight Attendant will be considered as having met her personal employment threshold at the end of the year.
 
 
General
 
Q1: Will Flight Attendants accrue sick and vacation benefits on a Voluntary Leave of Absence (VLOA)?
A: Yes, the accrual of sick and vacation benefits on a VLOA is JCBA language.