PHL News - February 14, 2004

Dear Council 70 Flying Partners:

I have received several emails/calls from those of you who were improperly furloughed on January 15. It now seems as if there may be an error in your February 15 paychecks. (FYI, Due to the banking holiday, if you bank at an institution other than the Credit Union you may not receive your pay until the 17th. This is yet another separate problem that is being dealt with and that I will hopefully have some additional information on in the near future.)

For now, please know that the minute we became aware that your pay may be in error we immediately contacted management. Unlike you and I, the management personnel who would be able to get to the bottom of this situation are not available over the weekend. However, management has stated that they will be looking into the issue first thing. I know this does not help you today and if I could I would personally hunt them down and drag them into work to resolve this issue but as it is we are going to have to wait until the work week begins for our answers.

If you have a specific name(s) of Flight Attendant's who believe their checks are in error please send those to either Warren (local office manager and furloughed Flight Attendant) or myself so we can then get their information and concerns into the proper hands.

Note: warrenrichardson15@hotmail.com, lec70phl@aol.com, as well as mmccarthy@afausairways.org.

Please double check your pay and remember to subtract any known deductibles so we have some idea of what the problem(s) might be. If you do not know how your pay schedule works, below is some information along with an example to assist you.

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Past Newslines

PAY SCHEDULES:

The January 30th pay is a 'Guesstimate' of what was earned in January. To get that guesstimate, payroll looks back at your December's pay and then divides that number in half which is what then determines what your January 30th 'advance pay' will be. The February 15th pay check is any additional pay earned in January but that was not captured on the January 30th advance paycheck.

To take some of the confusion out of it here is an example that might help you determine if your pay is in error or not.

Example:
Disclaimer. For this example we are using only the hourly base rate and are not including any additional pay premiums etc.

Flight Attendant Sue is a 105 option Reserve Flight Attendant. In December Flight Attendant Sue was only able to fly one trip. Therefore she did not come even close to making her option. However, because of her contract she is still guaranteed 71-hours of pay. If Sue's base pay is $25.00 per hour, her total base pay for the month of December would be $25 x 71-hours = $1,775. (Note: The new pay scales can be found in the Summer 2002 Restructuring Agreement or on the PHL web side by visiting www.afausairways.org and then linking onto PHL.)

JANUARY: On January 30, the Company does not know exactly what Sue earned/flew for January so they 'look back' at December's earnings to get a 'guesstimate'. They then take the December's pay, divide it in 1/2 and use that number to determine what Sue's 'advance' for January will be. This advance is what Sue receives on January 30th.

Because Sue did not break guarantee in December her January 30th 'base' pay is only $887.50 which is 1/2 of her December pay. The remainder of what Sue actually made in January will be paid on February 15th. So if Sue again did not break guarantee for January her total base pay for January would be $1,775. Because Sue has already received $887.50 of that pay on January 30th she is owed the remainder on February 15th.

One of the 'Improperly Furloughed' Flight Attendant's who has written to me only received $22.00 in their February 15, paycheck which would immediately make one believe that payroll is in error. HOWEVER, please remember that all of your deductibles are subtracted from your pay. Example: Taxes, 401K contributions, insurance's, uniform deductions, credit union disbursements etc. and take that into consideration when doing your own calculations.

We do not know at this time if there is an error or not but it certainly, at least on the surface, appears to be the case. If in fact that is the case we will do all we can to get this management to correct your pay ASAP.

I am going to ask a favor of you. I know you have been treated poorly by this management and are very frustrated, but the folks I have working for me and on your behalf in the local office are NOT the enemy. They are in fact your best friend and your greatest supporter...they champion your cause daily. They really are invaluable and do so much more on your behalf and for your protection than you could ever imagine. You may not know all they do for you and our cause but believe me things would be so much worse without them so please keep that in mind when you need to 'chew a little a--.'

I am very proud of the staff we have managed to put together on what has been a 'shoestring' budget. The PHL Local office has the best staff in the system but we also have, by far, the most problems and issues to deal with and not everything can be resolved in the minute. I want to thank them for their dedication and perseverance and I want to thank you so very much for your patience and for your understanding.

Take Care, Fly Safe and Happy Valentines Day,

Mollie McCarthy
LEC President
Council 70 - PHL/PHW

ALERT II

PS: I had just finished the message above when I was informed that scheduling has determined that they will be short tomorrow Sunday, February 15, 2004, especially in CLT & PHL. Because of this, I have also been told that scheduling is calling the 'Improperly Furloughed' Flight Attendant's asking them to return to work early.

First, you do NOT need to answer your phone or return scheduling call...you are NOT on duty. However, 'IF' you do want to help out please call scheduling ASAP. Make sure you get on tape that whatever you fly will be in ADDITION to your 35.5 hours guarantee for Feb.1 - 15, and that by taking this trip you will NOT be disadvantaged in any way for the month. Also make sure to let them know if you need any assistance in traveling from you home to base as they are willing to do that also.

I have spoken to both Tom & Donna, scheduling supervisors and have been assured that the trip pay will be in ADDITION to your 35.5 and that you will NOT be disadvantaged in any way. However, I also told him that you will want that information on tape for your protection and to expect the Flight Attendant's who do volunteer to ask the question. Write down the date, time and schedulers name.

This is up to you and if you elect to help out it will be greatly appreciated. Just make sure you get on tape what you need to protect yourself. Let me know if you have any problems.

Welcome back!

Take Care and Fly Safe,

Mollie
70