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Delta AFA Flight Attendant Hotline 7/2/2007Today is Monday, July 2nd and this is an updated hotline message for all Delta Air Lines flight attendants. SAS based flight attendant and AFA supporter, Mark Stell reporting... Transcript from June 21st Delta conference callRecently, I read the transcript of the June 21st call between our Delta flight attendant peers and management. First, let me express my appreciation to our 13 colleagues who participated on the call. You all did a great job trying to express some of the important work issues affecting all of us. I know each of you will make excellent AFA members once we win our representational election! The most prevalent issue discussed on the call was A-DAYS – and how our scheduling department is trying to evolve to be a more flight attendant friendly organization. Haven’t we been down this road a few hundred times? Here are a few quotes from the call that I found particularly revealing: FLIGHT ATTENDANT: “If you go out on the line, you will find out that scheduling is the most frustrating point of our lives as flight attendants.” DAVID WATSON (Head of Scheduling): "We’re also undertaking a full-blown review of all of our work rules to be prepared to introduce changes for next year, as we build some of the cost increases that we expect into our budget for next year?and we are working in conjunction with the EIG team as well on this." Here we go again! Our “work rules” are under assault. No doubt our managers will be touting how these changes will benefit us and improve our working lives. But the truth is; only we can determine and value what an improvement is. Until we have the right to bargain and negotiate we will forever be that little voice in the background saying, “Please, sir, may we have another?” FLIGHT ATTENDANT: “I don’t understand, and I speak for thousands of others out there, why the A-days aren’t going all the way up the ladder? It’s a pay cut; everybody should be getting it. It’s, frankly, a burden; everybody should be carrying the weight, and I feel it could help with covering positions.” DAVID WATSON: “It is absolutely a topic that received a lot attention here. We are about to kick off a full-blown review and overview of the A-day program for identifying a core team now. We will be visiting every base, so that you will have opportunity to have input into what that system ultimately looks like. We’ll have focus groups in every base, as well. So, please, pay attention to future communications on that - on the A-day program. I think we’re wide-open to input on that system and how it ultimately is constructed. Our goal is to have that reviewed complete and a - and the decision made on how we want to progress with the A-day program or whatever else may come along really by sort of late fall, early winter of this year.” JOANNE SMITH: "I mean, there are four or five options that David is looking at with the team and wants to get - really wants to solicit flight attendant’s feedback on all of those options. But no matter what option is chosen, including status quo, it’s just not popular, you know, it’s going to be a problem. Every single option has a problem with a specific group of people. So, we just have to balance, you know, flight attendant input in this and look at what’s the, you know, best system for the operation?” Okay, does this sound familiar? Not unlike the A-line program, management wants to hear our voice regarding the A-DAY program -- but does our voice actually mean anything? Our managers already know what they want and what they are going to do. Getting our feedback will only validate their decisions, regardless of how the majority of us feel. With AFA representation we ALL get a vote! It’s not just feedback. With an AFA contract, only WE can decide what is changed. This is NOT just about power or control. It’s about respect and responsibility. Our profession needs our engagement and that comes when all parties believe in the system facilitating that engagement. Joanne’s offer to find a “balanced” solution is appreciated, but isn’t it time we negotiate the solution? When we negotiate it’s not just for Delta flight attendants, it’s for the entire flight attendant profession. FLIGHT ATTENDANT: "On the 9th of this month, I had A-days. I put two days prior to my A-days’ preferences. And for whatever reason, the people in the scheduling decided not to run the preferences. The trip that I wanted to request was awarded to a much (newer) flight attendant. And then, I called, and they say, “Well, we’re busy. We just - we’re busy and we just did the running.” And so, as a result, I was awarded a much different trip. My little control that I had about my seniority, the faith that I have about the process, about, you know, the encouragement that I had about following the procedure of putting my preference, it’s just - it vanishes." DAVID WATSON: "So, if you’re pointing about either running preferences or not, there are some multiple reasons why or why we won’t run preferences right now. All of which are built into our rules. We are challenging all of the assumptions on this right now to make sure that they continue to make sense with an ultimate goal of having a single procedure in place for, virtually, every trip that we cover. And when that occurs, then we will publish these rules and put them on the lounges for you guys to see, so that you will know where we are and set the trip coverage." Unfortunately, David’s response is typical 'corporate Delta speak'. I mean, talk about the “grey area!” We have rules when it is and is not permissible to run flight attendant A-DAY preferences? But truly, any rule we have is simply a guideline anyway. Without an AFA contact we have no protection or guarantee about any rule unless it is a law (and there are few of those under the FAA). Let's be honest -- even with a contract some zealous scheduler could violate the agreement to protect the operation, and that’s why we’ll have a grievance procedure and remedies to address those occurrences. With adequate penalties and a system we can legally challenge, scheduling practices will be more fair and less likely to violate our seniority. FLIGHT ATTENDANT: "I’m one of those flight attendants that have the A-days. And I don’t - my biggest issue revolving around the A-days though is the lack of consistent compensation for those days. Meaning, you brought 1415 on my line but whether I get 1415 is up to, you know, chance. I really do believe that, if you preference to fly, you should be awarded the guarantee? I know I’m not alone in the frustration - to me, that’s the biggest issue with the A-days - you cannot rely on the pay even though it’s built into your schedule that’s been awarded." DAVID WATSON: "We’re currently running about 93 - a little bit over 93% utilization of A-days. So, it’s likely that, most flight attendants - well, they’re certainly being used, whether they’re getting the equivalent of 4:45 per day, I can’t speak to that." But David, that is the flight attendant’s point! We all deserve 4:45 a day when we are on duty. This is just one more example of what we will negotiate with our management when we have representational authority. We are happy that Delta has a 93% utilization rate. We all want to work productively! And we all want to be fairly paid for that productivity! But, we also want to make sure we have the maximum efficiency and credit for our time at work, so that we we do not have to spend unnessary time away from our families -- just to achieve our monthly flight time. FLIGHT ATTENDANT: "I think the A-day thing is huge, and I like the last caller’s emphasis on the effect on their income earning ability. David just said, you know, it could have an impact on the company. Well, it’s having an impact on the flight attendants. And although I don’t have A-days, I hear it so often, and I think that’s a really important component. What’s satisfying those people that have to have A-days is that you appreciate their availability. And on that word, “appreciate,” translates into pay them appropriately. So, nobody wants to be inappropriately compensated for being on the clock the company time. And if you do a three-day commitment and only get seven hours out of it, that’s a real hardship in play. So that’s a big one." While A-DAYS are above 50% at most of the bases and AFPs, it is good to hear a senior flight attendant’s perspective. A-DAYS affect all of us and it is going to take a collective effort to figure out the right solution to fairly fix this program. Do you believe management can do this without our involved input? Do you trust them to “balance” all the complex issues? Will “our” feedback matter -- even if we take the time to complete a survey or talk to an EIG flight attendant? Only with AFA will we truly have a voice that counts! Your PARTICIPATION, your PEER ELECTED REPRESENTATIVE, your VOTE will be your voice once we join AFA! I did my best not to “cherry pick” the topics I selected from the call. The rest of the call is what you would expect - management doing their best to be responsive to the topics flight attendants feel comfortable talking about. But what about the topics they’re not comfortable talking about? What about compensation, benefits and discipline? You rarely hear these topics questioned on conference calls. Once we are members of the Association of Flight Attendants you can fully expect your AFA representatives to broach these topics and many more without reserve. Conference calls take on a “personal nature” that makes it challenging to be forthright. It’s not an environment of professional equals working together to negotiate solutions. When we have representation we will have exactly that. Atlanta Employee Parking Lot Campaign WHEN: Every Tuesday thru Thursday Also, there are many AFA cards expiring -- so you may be contacted soon by a volunteer to remind you of that. If you think it’s been close to a year since you have signed a card, please sign another one today. You can download and print one at http://www.deltaafa.org/Docs/webcard2.pdf. Stay focused on our future and the future of Delta. Only when we have a legal voice will we get the respect and guarantees that we need 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. 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# |