Delta AFA Flight Attendant Hotline 5/28/2007

Today is Monday, May 28th and this is an updated hotline message for all Delta Air Lines flight attendants. SLC based flight attendant and AFA supporter, Paul Tanner reporting...

Taking Ownership of Our Activism

Memorial Day is a day of remembering those who have passed, but it is also the official beginning of summer. And I would like to take this day and remember last summer. The summer past was a summer that wasn’t. The changes in the work rules called “Fly Right” and the stress of bankruptcy stole most of last summer from many of us. Now we are on the cusp of another summer. What kind of summer will it be? Will it be a summer given to flying and confusion, dictated by ever-changing work rules and forced high time flying, or will it be a summer dedicated to taking back the career we have invested in?

I challenge each and every one of you to take back your summers. Make this summer about getting work rule protections. Make this the time when we stand up and say that it is time we are respected as a workforce. We are together and unified as one group. In order to succeed in our quest for representation we need to speak up.

This isn’t a time to put our heads down and just muddle through. Now is the time for us to create the atmosphere for change. Change for the better requires that we make some noise. We need to let our flying partners know that we are united. We need to let it be known that AFA is here to support our effort to create a better work environment. We have a management team that says it is dedicated in making Delta a better work environment. That’s something they need to do soon because it is difficult to get people to even think of starting an airline career these days. We can help by creating a professional environment that can exist well beyond the current administration.

Through our collective efforts we can create a Delta in-flight environment that will make us proud to say we are flight attendants for Delta Air Lines for years to come. And the only way we can guarantee that is with a contract. A contract negotiated with management in a spirit of understanding that our investment in Delta depends on a strong future.

You can foster this feeling of pride by constantly keeping your flying partners aware that we are still actively pursuing protections that are legally recognized. We need to have protections in place for our work rules, our duty rigs and our seniority in the case of a merger. By helping make this the summer of a contract you will help make the role of flight attendant a respected career for those who come after you and you will show respect those who have gone before.

Let's wear our AFA pins, hang our AFA bagtags on our lugguge, talk up AFA, step up our activism, take ownership of our pride in our profession. Join me in saluting our future. Make this our summer of securing a contract.

“Fly Right” Still Wrong

We are still sitting near the bottom in many of our work rules and duty rigs. What has changed for your work rules since emergence? There is a lot of talk from management about change, but we have yet to see much. Our flying partners should be reminded of such. Don’t be afraid to mention the obvious; we still operate under bankruptcy work rules. This is not acceptable. We have prepared a mailing that should reach you shortly which demonstrates the comparisons between Delta and other airlines. You will be surprised at the differences. The ability of management to change your work rules at will, which they have proven they are willing to do, is something that a contract will change. Share this information with your colleagues.

Only when we have a legal voice will we get the respect and guarantees that we deserve for long-term, career protection. Send in your AFA card today. Join the campaign and lend your voice to the 1,000's of Delta flight attendants who believe we are worth more. We encourage you to subscribe to JoinTogether by sending an email to jointogether@afanet.org and to visit the Crew Lounge discussion forum at www.ItsTimeDelta.net. If you have questions about the campaign, please feel free to email me directly at afa4dal@mac.com.

This concludes the hotline message. This message will be updated next week or sooner if necessary. In the meantime, take care of each other out there on the line.

-- To Listen To The Hotline, Call 1-800-424-2401, Press 1 Then 720 # --

Association of Flight Attendants-CWA, AFL-CIO
501 Third Street, NW
Washington, DC 20001
202-434-1300

Delta AFA Hotline: 1-800 424-2401, press 1, then 720#