Eline AFA US Airways

Friday, 6/28/02 - Your AFA Negotiating Committee met with management on Tuesday, June 25, Wednesday, June 26, Thursday, June 27, and continues to meet with the company today, June 28. We are in these talks to provide the airline with the labor cost savings it needs to get a loan guarantee from the federal government and possibly keep our carrier out of bankruptcy.

Since US Airways has already filed its application with the Air Transportation Stabilization Board, it has already met the government-imposed deadline of June 28 for applying for the $900 million loan guarantee. However, management says it needs to have, in hand, the tentative agreements reached with each labor group by Monday morning, July 1. At that time, management will be conducting a special meeting of the US Airways Board of Directors to make its final determination about whether it has achieved sufficient cost savings from each group to get the loan and stay out of bankruptcy.

Negotiations are scheduled to continue through the weekend. The current target date for a deal is sometime before Monday morning.

Your Negotiating Committee is working to ensure that flight attendants receive as much protection as possible in the event management determines it must file for bankruptcy. As part of any tentative agreement we may reach with management, we will be seeking agreement that if the carrier files for bankruptcy after we have reached agreement on a concession plan, the carrier will not seek any further cuts from our flight attendant contract in bankruptcy proceedings.

We are looking for this protection from further cuts because the company has made it clear that if it goes into bankruptcy without an agreement with a labor group, management will ask the bankruptcy judge to authorize the cuts that the carrier proposed in its first concession Term Sheet, and those groups will not share in the equity returns the company is offering to the groups that finish a deal outside of bankruptcy. While management originally said that it needed $90 million in annual cuts from the flight attendants, the first concession Term Sheet given to the AFA Negotiating Committee sought cuts of $108 million per year, including a 15.5% cut in wages, a cut in our pension formula, and massive cuts in our health insurance that would increase flight attendant out-of-pocket costs over 380% in the next four years.

Management has targeted health care cost savings as central to its Restructuring Plan in terms of overall employee costs. And management is demanding that all labor groups participate. Your Committee has been able to shape the impact of the other concessions (reducing the amount of wage cuts the company had sought and eliminating any pension formula cuts from the talks), including eliminating a number of management's initial cuts. But management has essentially said that health care changes must be part of the final deal for every labor group.

Management wants agreement from the labor groups to bring every US Airways employee under a single, national preferred provider organization. The company's original proposal, as stated above, called for a 380% increase in costs to each flight attendant. Your Committee has told management that deal would send flight attendants into personal bankruptcy, and is unacceptable.

AFA has retained the Segal Group, one of the country's top consulting firms on health care issues, to assist in the analysis of management's health care proposal. Tom Harter, from the Segal Group, has worked closely with the Negotiating Committee. Their goal is to develop a plan that allows management to achieve the significant cost savings it would realize from all employees being
covered by a single insurer, and within that plan, to minimize the impact on the flight attendants in terms of increased costs, ensure quality care and adequate networks.

As of this evening June 28, management has lowered to $80 million per year the amount of cost savings it is seeking from the flight attendants outside of bankruptcy. Your AFA Committee has a package on the table that provides the company with $67 million in cost savings per year, and which proposes profit sharing and other equity returns for the flight attendants.

As part of its application, US Airways told the ATSB it was seeking cost savings from the labor groups totaling about $1 billion per year and that it was negotiating for about $400 million a year in cost savings from its creditors. The ATSB has been and will continue to evaluate our carrier's loan request over the next several days. If any of the labor and/or creditor pieces fall through, the ATSB will take that into consideration when determining the amount of the loan guarantee they might be willing to grant.

Whatever we end up with will be significantly worse than what we have today. These final days are going to be very stressful for everyone. And we're still not sure if, after all of this work, US Airways will get the loan guarantee from the ATSB.

What we are trying to do is reach the best deal possible under these impossible circumstances. We will report out to you again after we meet with management. Until then, keep flying and keep up to date with the Hotline - 800-654-3143, Website - www.afausairways.org , E-Line or Negotiations Info Telephone Line - 800-531-3242.

US Airways' Payroll department only recently informs us that returning Voluntary Furloughees who had direct deposit prior to going out on their voluntary furlough must re-notify the Payroll Department to continue direct deposit. Unfortunately, this information just came out so many returning voluntary furloughees will receive their June 30th check as an actual paycheck instead of direct deposit.

If you have not contacted payroll, you will receive a live, actual BLUE PAY CHECK with the wording Pay to the Order of "Your Name Appears Here"

DO NOT THROW AWAY THE BLUE CHECK! THIS IS AN ACTUAL CHECK!

If you receive a RED Notification of Deposit, your check has been direct deposited. Your bank number and account number will show on the left-hand side of the check stub.

Please contact payroll if you want to continue direct deposit to your original institution.

Payroll
1800 872 4780 Prompts 3 then 2 for Flight Attendant Payroll

If you want to change where your check is deposited, please fill out a direct deposit card along with a voided check from your banking institution and forward to payroll:

Co-Mail
DCA/B725

Or Mail
US Airways Payroll
2345 Crystal Drive
Arlington, VA 22227

June 26, 2002

Failure to Address Aircraft Cabin Security Could Be Deadly

WASHINGTON - Patricia Friend, International President of the Association of Flight Attendants, AFL-CIO, issued this statement today on the failure of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee to develop a bill that actually closes the holes in aircraft security, endangering everyone in an aircraft cabin in the event of another attack:

"There are three major components to aircraft security. First, screening in the airport has been stepped up. Second, securing the cockpit in the event a terrorist gets through airport screening has been implemented. However, in one of the most blatant displays of sexism perpetrated by a Congressional Committee in decades, the third crucial component, protecting the passengers and cabin crew in the event a terrorist attack, has been completely ignored.

"The Arming Pilots against Terrorism Act, marked up by the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee today, once again gives further protection to the 99 percent male pilot workforce. Yet, House Committee Members refuse to support an amendment by Rep. Steve Horn (R-CA) that would adopt the same comprehensive approach to aircraft security that is detailed in the much more thorough Senate bill.

"The Senate cabin defense program, which would require all carriers to provide the 85 percent female flight attendant workforce with the training and tools necessary to lead the fight against terrorism in the aircraft and protect themselves and their passengers, has been neutered.

"The stripped down language in the House bill fails to require adequate training and even fails to provide flight attendants who are defending themselves and their passengers with the same liability protections given to pilots -- who could now have guns. One staff member in Rep. Mica's office went so far as to ask me, 'What happens if a flight attendant uses her self-defense training to take out frustrations on a passenger she just doesn't like?'

"By passing this bill as it stands now, the House would in effect be saying, 'We trust guys with guns, but not women trained to defend themselves.' By passing this bill, the House would send the message, 'We believe pilots and air marshals should be given liability protection, but the flight attendants should just keep on smiling and serving drinks in an attempt to subdue the terrorists
through kindness.'

"We already have a law without teeth. The Aviation Security Act passed in November fails to require specific training for cabin crew to defend against terrorists. Because of these loopholes, the airlines have managed to offer only the bare minimum -- in many cases just two or three hours of updated training -- and have made vital components, like self-defense, voluntary. In fact, some carriers have not started the new training at all. These policies are irresponsible and virtually useless in protecting the cabin.

"Giving guns to pilots without specific cabin defense requirements for airlines could be deadly for flight attendants and passengers. It also does nothing to help flight attendants thwart a threat to the cockpit, which must come from a hijacker in the cabin."

New PHX RON hotel

Much appreciation is due Audrey Lindner, MEC Crew Accommodations Chair, for the untiring work in changing the PHX long RON, which will now be at a Marriott Hotel. Without Audrey's persistence we would not beenjoying the full service level of accommodations that are expected andrequired by the Flight Attendant group on their layovers. We all owe her a very loud andheartfelt THANK YOU!!

And we thank all of you who filled out the OF-310's online and turned in the OF-310 hard copies; for without these Audrey would not have had the backing to push for these changes. Audrey's email address is: alindner@afausairways.org.

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