8.06.23 – APFA DCA Base Brief – September 2023 Staffing and Allocations

September 2023 DCA Staffing and Allocations

Sunday, August 6, 2023

In Today’s Base Brief:

• Strike authorization vote: Have you voted?
• Need help with password reset?
• I’m on probation. Am I allowed to vote?
• September 2023 Staffing and Allocations information

Have you voted in the strike authorization vote?

We Are Ready (WAR) – That’s our motto for our up coming Strike Authorization Vote (SAV). If you have not done so log into APFA.org and cast your YES Vote for our SAV. Results will be announced on August 30th. All members including new hires and probationary Flight Attendants are encouraged to have their voices heard!

Need help with a password reset? Questions about voting?

After-hours password resets:

Email [email protected] with your employee ID and full name with a request to reset.

I’m on probation. Am I allowed to vote?

All APFA Members in good standing, including probationary Flight Attendants, may participate in the strike authorization vote. Your vote is completely confidential. Neither APFA nor the election vendor will be able to access how anyone voted. Management will not have access either. 

You cannot be terminated for casting a vote, whether or not you are on probation.

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When PBS processing begins, if additional Lineholders are needed, those with Reserve status will be changed to Lineholder status in the following order:

1. Tentative Flight Attendants whose preference was Lineholder in the LRD process.
2. Reserve Flight Attendants who toggled to Pref LH in the LRD who were unable to hold Lineholder status in LRD.
3. Most junior Reserve Flight Attendants involuntarily moved to Lineholder status after all the above have been utilized.

Important: If you are in one of these 3 categories above, you will want to bid 7 layers of Reserve and 7 layers of Lineholder in PBS.

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• DCA: 40,430 flying hours (-149)
• IAD: 1,927 (-647)
• BWI: 2,955 (-20)

45,312 Total flying hours (DCA, IAD, BWI) (-816)

• September will not be a flex month. The contractual targeted credit range default is 70-90, with less projected Reserves and more projected Lineholders.
• It can be assumed that due to decrease in block hours month over month that the PBS constraints will not go as senior as we saw in August.
• No monthly vacation buyback will be offered for September.
• DCA September Reserve seniority begins at system seniority 24,064 OCC date October 6, 2022.
• DCA is not projected to receive any new hires in September.

September Holidays or Events

• Labor Day on September 4
• 911 National Observance Day on September 11
• National Football League (NFL) and College Football seasons will begin September 7

Allocation Notes for September

• 816 total block hours over August 2023 (fall schedule pull down)
• 789 total sequences down from 849
• ODAN sequences slightly up from August- BGR, BOS, LGA, PWM, RDU
• LAX high time one day turns are not offered in September due to ground time in LAX prior to the return flight causing the scheduled duty day to exceed the contractual duty day limitations in section 11 of the JCBA,
• We will continue to address the return of these popular turns including a possibility of receiving other high time turns that are within the limitations.
• LAX 2-day one leg out and one leg back operates 31 days with a pay credit of 10:55 RON layover 25 hours.
• BWI will have DFW turns operating 31 days.
• PHX ‘Pink eye’ operating 31 days.
• 23 Charter/Honor flights operating in September.
• 9 speaker sequences requiring Spanish speakers.
• 93 pure MAX sequences
• 88 sequences with 3+ hour sit times slightly up from August.
• 33 NIPD trips out of DCA with RONs; CUN, KIN, MTY, NAS, PTY
• IAD and BWI will have no NIPD layovers.
• **NEW** HAV turns incorporated in 2 sequences in September.
• Canada: YYC, YYZ, YVR, YHC
• Sequences that we flagged and sent over to the company for review.
• 13363, 13576, 13618, 13564, 13523 these sequences have excessive legs, multiple sit times, long duty, short overnights and lengthy TAFB

Scheduled Duty Days:

• < 8 hours 46.4%
• 8-10 hours 27.3%
• 10-12 hours 23.6%
• >12 hours 2.7%

Scheduled Legs in Duty Day:

• 1-leg 30.2%
• 2-legs 50.9%
• 3-legs 17.1%
• 4-legs 1.8%

Scheduled Layover Rest:

• <11 hours 0.2%
• 11-12 hours 4.1%
• 12-14 hours 27.3%
• 16-18 hours 18.9%
• >24 hours 9.9%

Scheduled Sit Times:

• 2 – 2.5 hours 11%
• 2.5 – 3 hours 10.4%
• >3 hours 3.4%

September 2023 Bidding Timelines

September 2023

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Final Notes for DCA:

The allocations (trip construction) survey from last month is completed and the results will be sent out in a separate communication. We were pleased that about 50% of our active Flight Attendants in the DCA base participated in this survey. Many others had expressed their concerns or suggestions through email, phone/text, or terminal engagement. Thank you!

As many of you have seen our Contract ACTION Team CAT) Ambassadors throughout the terminals in DCA, IAD, and BWI engaging with our members to remind them of the upcoming Strike Authorization Vote (SAV). Our team has been working hard to give current and accurate information about our Negotiation process and upcoming Strike Vote.

If you have voted, CAT Members will be pinning you with our new union We Are Ready (WAR) Pin to represent that you have participated in the vote! If you voted and did not receive a WAR pin, please reach out and we will make sure you receive one! We would like to thank our CAT members for their hard work and dedication to our cause. As special thank you to Dylan Shaw, Gina Fowlkes, Sara Parks, Alex Roberts, and many others who have volunteered to help educate the members with our coming initiatives!

Our CAT members is wearing the Red or Black APFA logo t-shirts, so it won’t be hard to identify them. CAT members will be in the terminals this month, daily in DCA and select days at BWI and IAD.

We are planning a nationwide picketing event at all our crew bases August 30th to exercise our rights as Union workers under the Railway Labor Act. Join us at Ronald Reagan National Airport (DCA) on August 30th from 11am -1pm. Let us show the Company that  WE ARE READY! More information will follow in the upcoming weeks!

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A Message From Your APFA Base Presidents
Strike Authorization Vote

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Are You Dues Current in Order To Vote?

As we enter this critical phase in negotiations, it is imperative that all members are in good standing. You must be an active member in good standing to participate in Union activities such as voting.

You must log into APFA.org to see your balance. To log in, select ‘Log In’ from the right corner. Log in using your employee number and password (if you don’t remember your password or you have not yet set one, select ‘Forgot Password’). We must have a valid personal email address on file (AA Email is not allowed) for your account to be active. If you do not have an email address on file or if the email address is incorrect, please email [email protected].

Please make sure that APFA has your most updated contact information. Click ‘Update Information‘ to update your information in ‘My Account‘.

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In closing, I would be remiss if I didn’t thank each of you for all you do daily. I field many calls and emails with situations that you face. The adversity that you deal with and how you handle yourself is exemplary. Whether issues with the company or internal, you are always professional and respectful. I know this summer has been extremely challenging, and you have been resilient. You always rise above. THANK YOU!  Let’s all join and get the contract we all deserve! We are Stronger together!

ARE YOU READY? WE ARE READY!

In Solidarity,

John Pennel
APFA DCA Base President
[email protected]

Dianne Britton
APFA DCA Base Vice President
[email protected]

Lisa Barnes
APFA DCA Base Council Representative – Allocations
[email protected]