3.09.24 – Secondary Vacation Bidding Extended

Saturday, March 9, 2024

Secondary Vacation Bidding Extended

As many of you know, there was an error in the Primary Vacation Award that impacted the PHL base. This error was uncovered by Flight Attendants and was immediately escalated to the company.  As a result, the company has agreed to extend the secondary round of vacation bidding for all bases by one day.

Secondary Vacation Bidding will now close on Wednesday, March 13, 2024, at 1200 CT.

The award is still scheduled to be posted per the usual timeline on Friday, March 15, 2024, at 1200 CT.

Note to PHL Flight Attendants

This error caused discrepancies in the Secondary Vacation Matrix for the PHL base. The company has assured APFA the matrix has been updated and reflects the correct information. Flight Attendants based in PHL are encouraged to review the matrix again before bids close to ensure bids reflect the days available in the Secondary Round.

Additional Vacation Bidding Information

The Secondary Round allows you to bid for any remaining vacation days not awarded in the Primary Round of vacation bidding. Additionally, any carry forward days are bid in the Secondary Round. You may only be awarded from the remaining dates available at your base. You will be awarded at your seniority until all your vacation days are awarded, or the system is unable to satisfy any more of your preferences. All vacation days will be awarded or assigned upon the completion of the Secondary Round of bidding.
Please note: Your 2024-2025 Annual Vacation Primary and Secondary Vacation Awards/Assignments are based on your crew base of record as of January 1, 2024.

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Annual Vacation Bid and Award (AVBA) System Access
To bid for vacation, go to the Crew Portal. Once logged in, click on:

• Monthly Bids > Vacation > Annual > Bidding Ballots  

Click Here for the APFA Vacation Bidding Basics

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Vacation Fiscal Year

The vacation fiscal year includes the May to April contractual months, from May 2 (beginning of May bid month) to May 1 (end of April bid month).

2024-25 Crew Months Calendar

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Q1: What happens if I cannot hold my vacation bid in the Primary or Secondary Rounds?
A1: The assignment process uses the remaining vacation days not awarded in the primary or secondary award. The remaining days are assigned in seniority order according to the following logic:

1. Reverse chronological order starting with December 31 through May 2, then
2. Reverse chronological order starting with May 1 through January 1

Vacation days are assigned in blocks of seven (7) days. If you have less than seven (7) days remaining, or there are no seven (7) day blocks left, the assignment is made to the first block that matches the amount of your remaining days. However, based on availability during the assignment process, your remaining number of days may not be awarded as a single block.

Q2: Can I change my vacation days that were awarded in the Primary Round during the Secondary Round?
A2: No. Primary Round awards are final. You will have the opportunity to change vacation days once the Vacation Monthly Rebid (MRB) process begins.

Q3: What is a Filler Day and why would I want to designate Filler Days?
A3: Filler Days are accrued vacation days that you decide to set aside during the annual vacation bid. You may set aside up to 20% (or a maximum of six (6) days) of your vacation days as Filler Days. These days are subtracted from your accrued vacation days. If you designate Filler Days during the annual vacation bid, you will bid to schedule the days during the monthly Filler Day bids throughout the year. You may want to utilize Filler Days to bid to have a holiday off that you cannot hold in the annual bid or to add one more day to an existing vacation block.

Q4: What is a Vacation Extension (VEX) day?
A4: If you have seven or more consecutive vacation days, you are able to request up to four VEX days. You may have no more than four VEX days per bid month, even if you have separate seven day (or more) vacation blocks in the month. There are no blackout dates for VEX days, and they are not seniority driven.

VEX days may be placed before, after, or split in any combination on either side of a vacation period. They may also be placed in the bid month prior to your vacation or carry into the next bid month. VEX day requests must be entered two months prior to the bid month you would like the VEX days to be placed or two months prior to the bid month in which your vacation starts – whichever is earlier.

The days off will act as a pre-planned absence and will carry neither a value for pay nor credit. Such days off will be counted toward the Reserve’s scheduled Golden Days. Such block of four days, or portion thereof, may be extended into the next bid period. Such election shall be honored unless the PBS program cannot produce a solution honoring such election.

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If you have any vacation questions, please open a support ticket by going to Crew Portal > Links > SupportTab > System (Vacation)/Form Type (Annual Vacation).

In Solidarity,

Jeff Petersen
APFA National Contract Chair
[email protected]

Marti McMillan
APFA National Scheduling Chair

[email protected]