AFA topic 9/6-9/26 title edited

[ganesha]

RSV's, JM has 2 years left, start GROOMING a new person NOW. RSV's BAND TOGETHER, UNITE and FIX the problem, you are all going to be on RSV for at least 5 more years. JM would never go back on the line, ever, he wouldn't be able to. Get a new, fresh person in there, a Pres and VP that know what is going on.

 

[missthe727]

alPHa??? I love it when people have a few cocktails and post
Actually, as much as I would like to throw AFA under the bus, we need them to protect our seniority with whatever next merger comes our way. That's the only reason to keep them around....but it's a darn good one since seniority is all we have left---and it really doesn't amount to much---but it's something.

 

[flybynite]

Oh for gods sakes.

Every time someone gets their knickers in a twist somehow it's either the block holders fault or the union's.

Why don't you wake up and put the blame squarely where it belongs??? In the lap of the company. I am so sick and tired of the reserves jumping all over the block holders just because they have the seniority to have a block.

Christ on a stick!!!! I was on reserve for 15 years!!! I've walked the walk. And I have never blamed block holders. I have always dropped the way reserves are treated on the company.
They are the ones that treat reserves like second class citizens. Our last contract was crammed down our throats by a bankruptcy judge. At the behest of our company and Doug Parker.

As a reserve, what are you doing to get your issues heard? Are you bellyaching on this board or are you getting involved in your local and making your needs heard? Are you writing the NC and giving well thought out suggestions or are you just calling up every now and then and just bitching?

If you are not going to be part of the solution then you will be part of the problem.

 

[midnightmech]

its so much more fun to go WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA here than to get involved and participate with the union. Heaven forbid that we all band together with our collective, appointed, elected representatives and PARTICIPATE!!!

 

[N965VJ]

<SNIP> Every time someone gets their knickers in a twist somehow it's either the block holders fault or the union's.

Why don't you wake up and put the blame squarely where it belongs??? In the lap of the company.

BINGO!

 

[lildutchgrl]

Where I have not always seen eye to eye with AFA, I have to agree that the holdup here is the company. The company is the reason flight attendants don't have a contract yet. They want to pay us the least amount for the most work. Sell this, sell that, do this, do that. All for the same wages.
Reserves are the largest group posting here because we are the ones sitting around in our crashpads making guarantee only getting called for the 0430 check ins or the delayed flights during inclement weather. Forget about calling in sick, because then you basically end up without a paycheck on the 15th due to the 70% pay. I hope that a reserve/seasonal reserve starts now at campaigning themselves for the next local elections. That may be the only way reserves will get their voice heard. I was a seasonal blockholder my last year with US, but I had to fly every weekend to hold a block, or bid reserve and have every weekend off.

 

[ggiby]

Where I have not always seen eye to eye with AFA, I have to agree that the holdup here is the company. The company is the reason flight attendants don't have a contract yet. They want to pay us the least amount for the most work. Sell this, sell that, do this, do that. All for the same wages.
Reserves are the largest group posting here because we are the ones sitting around in our crashpads making guarantee only getting called for the 0430 check ins or the delayed flights during inclement weather. Forget about calling in sick, because then you basically end up without a paycheck on the 15th due to the 70% pay. I hope that a reserve/seasonal reserve starts now at campaigning themselves for the next local elections. That may be the only way reserves will get their voice heard. I was a seasonal blockholder my last year with US, but I had to fly every weekend to hold a block, or bid reserve and have every weekend off.

When is the last afa.... meeting anyone went to? The last ten I have been to, there are maybe 10 people at...and always the same ten...
so when was the last one that these people moaning and groaning have been too???

Oh... guess they had a party to go to....
stop complaining and get involved....

just my opinion....
thanks for listening...

 

[FlyGuyBWI]

If F/A reserves want more vocal representation, band together and elect an LEC President (or 5). It has happened before -- look at MM in BWI back in 1998. Heck, those BWI reserves voted in an entire reserve LEC - Pres., VP, and Sec.! So, it can be done. Short of that, bombard your LECP and the MEC with e-mails, letters, etc. about the issues that are important to you (reserve and lineholder, alike). AFA's process does work, if members are involved. Also, your local officers -- love them or hate them -- do more work on behalf of the members than most of us will ever know. A lot of time is spent saving jobs and processing individual grievances, but even more is spent making sure that the company lives up to it's contractural obligations, and answering member questions and helping members with issues ranging from benefits to medical leaves to maternity leaves to Saftey to EAP issues. Plus, AFA has an extremely effective Legislative Affairs Department which lobbies for our interests in Congress.

If you have a problem with AFA, get involved and be part of the solution. At least take time to vote in elections -- not enough of us do.

 

[Toothy Grin]

If F/A reserves want more vocal representation, band together and elect an LEC President (or 5). It has happened before -- look at MM in BWI back in 1998. Heck, those BWI reserves voted in an entire reserve LEC - Pres., VP, and Sec.! So, it can be done.
================
When you have time would you fill me in....I'm hearing lots of grumbling these days out west and I'm sure they'd be interested. Seems reserve just went from 3yrs to 9 years overnight...and now the once so smug lineholders are tasting what's been served and surprise of all surpises - they don't like it.

What was the bottom line result of B. representation? changes?

Thank you,

 

[PHLfa88]

Does anyone that post gripes about AFA have any idea of what a union is? Its "organized labor." Does anyone know what that means? It means everyone is the "union." Every union member needs to do more then just pay dues. Do you carry your contract? Don't have one? You can get one from your crew service center in each base.

If you are unhappy with AFA, then get involved in your local. Go into the office volunteer your time to answer the phones. Join a committee to make a difference. Everyone has to work for the union for the union to work for everyone.

Your elected officers can only do so much, you need the support of your members to be able to stand up to company. Until you organize yourselves that will never happen. Management loves that fact that we are so disfunctional, it gives them all the bargaining power at the table.

They Won't!! All they will do is B@@ch and Moan!!

 

[Twicebaked]

RSV's, JM has 2 years left, start GROOMING a new person NOW. RSV's BAND TOGETHER, UNITE and FIX the problem, you are all going to be on RSV for at least 5 more years. JM would never go back on the line, ever, he wouldn't be able to. Get a new, fresh person in there, a Pres and VP that know what is going on.

John Mckorckle is NOT the problem. It appears that you have a personal issue with the man.
The problem is that we have an MEC Pres that will NOT listen to ANYBODY!!!!! PERIOD!!!!

I have tried MANY MANY times to bring issues up just to be told "They won't go for it"!!!

Our union is not a union. It is a team of two.... Mike and Carol!!!!!

 

[ussnark]

John Mckorckle is NOT the problem. It appears that you have a personal issue with the man.
The problem is that we have an MEC Pres that will NOT listen to ANYBODY!!!!! PERIOD!!!!

That is so wrong. Your MEC president must listen to the MEC, which is composed of the local council presidents. If they share your thought, then they can remove him, at will. In, fact, they must remove him, otherwise they are hardly doing their job.

The MEC (council presidents) gave the MEC president, his job. They must take it away if he "doesn't listen to anyone".

Doesn't involve "Mckorckle", personally, at all.

 

[aredeeyou22]

John Mckorckle is NOT the problem. It appears that you have a personal issue with the man.
The problem is that we have an MEC Pres that will NOT listen to ANYBODY!!!!! PERIOD!!!!

I have tried MANY MANY times to bring issues up just to be told "They won't go for it"!!!

Our union is not a union. It is a team of two.... Mike and Carol!!!!!

I disagree. I stay in touch with the MEC pres through emails, constantly asking where we are in negotiations. It may take him a few days to get back to me, but he thoroughly answers my questions.

Make no mistake, he will NOT be selling reserves down the river. He hears us loud and clear, and the reserve section is perhaps the toughest, most argued about section on both sides of the fence (Company and Union).

If you are referring to the MEC's reluctance to negotiate rotating reserve, you are right: he did say forget it, because no one will go for it (regardless of what they say), and it is a waste of productive negotiating time. Show me a BH that will agree to reserve once or twice or three times a year, and I'll show you some super beachfront property in Ar-i-zona. Ain't gonna happen, I don't care what they're telling you on the jumpseat..

Don't forget that the MEC proposed 12 "reserve relief" ideas to the Company when the new 24/7 rule was enforced: the Company only went for one.

Shoot him an email; he'll explain whats going on, in detail.

With regards to Carol:

I met her recently, and appreciated her explanations on how the block building process unfolds. She explained how, each month, she "hand builds" 20-50 more blocks after the computer is not able to. I don't know a lot about her, and I agree she should communicate more of what she does on a daily basis, but I certainly don't think she, or the MEC, are the people we should be fighting. It should be the company. They should negotiate a fair contract that provides all of its members a chance to make a living, and the MEC negotiating team is to ensure that.

Stay tuned.....

 

[missthe727]

John Mckorckle is NOT the problem. It appears that you have a personal issue with the man.
The problem is that we have an MEC Pres that will NOT listen to ANYBODY!!!!! PERIOD!!!!

I have tried MANY MANY times to bring issues up just to be told "They won't go for it"!!!

Our union is not a union. It is a team of two.... Mike and Carol!!!!!

and the only way to get Mike out is to have the LECPs recall him.

Jolly Johnny M and Mike are big time buddies. That's why Mike was scared to have TG get the LECP office in PHL...she would have initiated a recall of Mike and would have had the votes to do it.(and no, I am not a TG fan at all) However Mike stays best buds w/ whoever is LECP in CLT and PHL in order to have the votes go his way. ....by supporting Jolly Johnny M. you are supporting Mike and Carol.

 

[safety stud]

The problem each of you is having a hard time grasping is that the company holds ALL the cards here. As was stated earlier, If the union proposes 12 different ways to deal with 24/7 and the company only take one side then the compnay mutes the ability of the union to negotiate properly. Bottom line, we don't have footing on this matter till the CBA becomes amendable. The company can continue to negotiate at a snails pace.

In regards to MF and CA, I feel they are doing the best with what they have to deal with. I, like others, have shot off many emails to them asking about various items of negotiations. They do get back to me very quickly. I don't see eye to eye with them, however, I do feel they are doing what they can with what they have. Remember, the CBA isn't even amendable on the east till 2011, meaning the company can drag their feet and we might not see anything to vote on till 2014.

In regard to JM in PHL or AC in CLT... Give it a rest... The only people that gripe about them are the ones on this board. They were elected by a majority... let me say that again... A MAJORITY of their fellow flight attendants at their bases. Just because you might not see eye to eye with them on specific issues doesn't mean you recall them for that purpose alone. If they voted in a particular way on a specific item you don't agree with, then by all means shoot an email to them explaining why. Don't shoot the messenger because he is just doing what YOU elected him/her to do.

Now to the nitty gritty of negotiations...

I don't know about you, but I am tired of getting these simple 2% raises per year. The annual COL goes up 4.7% per year. This equates to a 2.7% CUT in pay per year of usable cash. Now tack on the annual increases in our health care of around 2% and starting in JAN you are making 4.7% less than you should. These increases have taken place each year since the early 90's.

For me, I feel the pay increase per year should be nothing less than the COL + 2% so that we aren't making a move backward in usable cash. This is simple mathmatics. Since 1990, I have lost more than 84% of my usable cash. This through no fault of my own.

There are so many other issues that need attention... IE sick time... If you accrue sick time at 100% you had better pay it back at 100% not at the 70% level we have now. This is just downright wrong. Vacation, Hoiday pay, soooo many other issues that affect us so much more than just the reserve issue. Not to underplay its importance. Just to say the contract effects each of us differently.

Thoughts?

Just my opinion...