10.30.24 – 2024 Fall Board of Directors Meeting Recap

2024 Fall Board of Directors
Meeting Recap

Wednesday, October 30, 2024

• National Officer’s Update 
  • Union Outreach Steering Committee Report/ Resolution- Julie Hedrick
  • Management Accountability Steering Committee Report- Larry Salas
  • Financial Reform Steering Committee Report/ Resolutions- Erik Harris
  • Constitution Steering Committee Report- Josh Black

The APFA Fall Board of Directors meeting convened on Wednesday, October 16, 2024. Four steering committees, comprised of your APFA Base and National Leadership, were created to guide critical issues and initiatives for our Union. These steering committees will address the most pressing issues for our Union: expanding Union outreach, holding management accountable, financial reform, and ensuring a modern and updated APFA Constitution to reflect the needs of our Members.

Minutes for this meeting will be published to the APFA website no later than thirty (30) business days after the conclusion of the meeting per Policy Manual Section 4.A.7.b.(3).

The final agenda for the meeting may be found here.

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Union Outreach Steering Committee

The National Officer’s Update began with the Union Outreach Steering Committee, led by National President Julie Hedrick. The committee aims to strengthen cooperation and collaboration with other Unions to improve pay rates, enhance work rules, and fight corporate greed.

APFA Members know firsthand the power of working alongside other Unions. From securing protections through the Payroll Support Programs during the COVID-19 pandemic to our recent prolonged fight for the contract we deserve, we’ve seen support from Unions across industries and occupations. This solidarity has been key to our successes, and now more than ever, it’s something upon which we must continue to build.

APFA will continue to support the Flight Attendants at Delta Air Lines as they fight for Union representation and a contract that locks in work rules and benefits and lifts the entire industry. During negotiations, AA management stuck to their rigid framework of only matching Delta on wages for months, which was a non-starter. Delta management holds the industry back, and as we know, a collective bargaining agreement is much more than wages. Pay protections without obligations, contractual language for PBS, contractual language on how we are paid, and specific rescheduling language during irregular operations are integral parts of a collective bargaining agreement. Delta Flight Attendants deserve to lock in those protections in a contract. We will ramp up our support of Delta Flight Attendants and AFA-CWA as they move forward in their organizing campaign- stay tuned for more information.

As you may recall, at the 2022 Fall BOD Meeting, your APFA Board of Directors unanimously passed a resolution at the 2022 Fall BOD meeting to ensure APFA’s participation in the biennial Labor Notes Conference in Chicago, IL. Labor Notes is dedicated to building stronger Unions through organizing, forming strategies to push back against management concessions, and forming Union alliances. It’s a network of rank-and-file members, local Union Leaders, and Labor Activists who believe in fighting for a stronger labor movement.

This year, your APFA Board of Directors took another step to strengthen our commitment to Union outreach and collaboration by unanimously passing a resolution to create a volunteer Union Outreach Team. This team ensures that APFA members play an active role in the broader labor movement, working to advance collective labor rights and strengthen our ability to engage in class struggle Unionism. Members can volunteer for this team to support pro-labor issues and candidates, and to help with outreach and engagement efforts.

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Management Accountability Steering Committee

Under the leadership of National Vice President Larry Salas, the Management Accountability Committee has been established. This committee was formed to tackle the impersonal discipline being imposed on Flight Attendants, with little regard for individual circumstances and the unique work environment we face.

What’s the plan?

All levels of APFA Leadership, with the help of 28,000 Flight Attendants, will formulate a plan to hold management accountable for supporting Flight Attendants. Crew Managers (CM) and Crew Attendance Managers (CAM) must be adequately trained to answer Flight Attendant questions about all aspects of their jobs, rather than focus on micromanaging and disciplining Flight Attendants with insignificant issues.

Centralizing attendance with CAMs managing over 1500 Members is no way to support Flight Attendants. Every day, Flight Attendants struggle with untimely answers from their CM or CAMs unwilling to mitigate attendance events because of a centralized system that doesn’t consider individual circumstances. Additionally, management changes policies from week to week with little to no notification to Flight Attendants or APFA.

Management must do better! They have a responsibility to support their employees. It’s time for the 28,000 Flight Attendants at American Airlines to hold management accountable.

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Financial Reform Steering Committee

Financial reform and transparency have been a top priority for our administration. When we took office in 2020, APFA’s finances were in urgent need of restructuring. We kicked off this reform effort with seven resolutions at the 2021 Annual Convention to address overspending and the misuse of Union funds. Your APFA Board of Directors acted swiftly, passing these resolutions to improve how your dues are spent and ensure that every dollar is used responsibly and effectively.

Our Union operates entirely on your dues dollars, which cover everything from base and national representation to the salaries and benefits for our UAW-represented Office Workers and Professional Employees at headquarters. Every dollar we spend is yours, so we must remain fiscally responsible and stay within our budget. We’re committed to ensuring that your contributions are used wisely and effectively to support our Union and its Members.

During this Board of Directors meeting, we established the Financial Reform Steering Committee, led by National Treasurer Erik Harris. This committee aims to build on our Financial Reform Initiative. They have identified additional areas where we can spend our dues dollars more effectively and update our policies. At this meeting, your APFA Board of Directors unanimously passed four new resolutions, including:

• Implementing a salary cap for APFA Representatives on a full PPO removal (Resolution #3- Maximum Pay for Full PPO Removal);
• No longer reimbursing an APFA Representative for mileage between their residence and their base airport, and no longer reimbursing an APFA Representative for public transportation at their base airport (Uber, Lyft, etc). (Resolution #4- Mileage and Public Transportation);
• Increasing the current 18-day APFA work obligation for a full-time trip removed representative. (Resolution # 5- 18 Day Minimum Requirement)The days, or hourly equivalent to be worked will be dependent on paid APFA hours as follows:

• Reducing the amount of per diem for an APFA Representative if a meal is provided by APFA (i.e. catered during meetings or events). (Resolution #6- Per Diem)

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Constitution Steering Committee

The Constitution Steering Committee, chaired by National Secretary Josh Black, was created to ensure that our Union’s Constitution and Policy Manual remains relevant and up-to-date and meets the needs of our Membership. It will also ensure that our headquarters, departments, and bases are adequately funded.

This Committee will tackle topics such as the viability of the APFA Executive Committee, updated timeframes for voting periods, dues restructuring, and how much of your dues is allocated to the Negotiations and Negotiations Related Fund (NNRF).

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The 2024 Fall Board of Directors meeting focused on collaboration among our National and and Base Leadership to ensure that our Union operates efficiently and with fiscal responsibility. Modernizing the APFA Constitution and holding management accountable are key priorities that will strengthen our Union’s foundation and ensure that your voices are heard.

The upcoming meeting minutes will include information on New Business items, and the Department Reports will be posted for Membership viewing.

In Solidarity,