AFA Wages Media War
AFA is waging war in the media. The AFA International office has put the Communications department at our complete disposal. Before each pre-CHAOS event or at each new twist in our negotiations process there are numerous press releases distributed to the media in key areas of this country and to Europe.

We target television, radio and print media.

Our message is carried by the Reuters, Associated Press, and Bloomberg news services.

Your AFA International, MEC and Local leaders speak to the press, T.V. and radio reporters frequently. As you can imagine, the media can interpret and publish what they want.

However, to ensure that our message is getting out to the public, we have access to a tracking service that monitors almost every mention of the Association of Flight Attendants and USAIRWAYS in the media. This service verifies that there are hundreds of stories aired and written per every AFA press release.

Company Shutdown
Management has announced that it will shutdown the Company if there is no agreement with us by March 25th 12:01 AM. It seems, though, that all of the departments at USAIRWAYS have not been told by Wolf and Gangwal of these plans because they are unable able to provide your AFA Representatives with any details of this shutdown.

Questions are not being answered:
 

As a working crewmember will you be stuck in another city?

If you have vacation during the shutdown period will you be paid?

Will the whirlwind of Airbus training continue? Why bother if we are shutting down?

Your questions about the effects of a shutdown deserve to be answered. We urge you to contact your Inflight supervisor regarding the shutdown and get answers to your questions. They must have them because everyone knows they could not have possibly announced a shutdown of a multi-billion dollar company with over 45,000 employees and not thought through the details.

Remember, WE ARE NOT ON STRIKE; management has decided to shut down. We also remind you to refrain from engaging in any conversation about negotiations with your supervisor or other company representatives. If anyone tries to circumvent your negotiating committee, tell them that you are represented at the bargaining table by AFA. What you tell company representatives goes straight up the company ladder.

Bag Searches
There is a rumor that management is conducting bag searches. AFA has not received any calls from crews who have actually been searched. We have unable to verify this. However, if you are approached by a management representative who demands to search you bags:

Ask for their company ID.

Call a union representative immediately; you have a contractual right to have a union representative present.

If a union representative can be available in a reasonable amount of time, wait. Otherwise get a line flight attendant to be a witness for you.

If a flight attendant supervisor gives you a direct work order in writing you should comply. Remember that all items on the aircraft should remain on the aircraft.

CHAOS Command Center (CCC) Activities
The Center is open and has been running full blast at the MEC office in PIT. They are coordinating communications and events. We urge you to participate in the activities and meetings they have planned.

The CHAOS Help Line is set up. Your help is needed to staff this valuable service. If you live in PIT or will be there any time soon, call the help line to volunteer, 412-262-9223.

March 17th is Solidarity Day at USAIRWAYS. We are asking our fellow labor groups to wear green ribbons on March 17th to show support for us in our contract negotiations.

Pledges of support are pouring in from other AFA carriers and unions across the country. The CCC is assembling a list of available buddy passes for potentially stranded flight attendants from other AFA carriers.

They are also coordinating a host program network that would match stranded USAIRWAYS Flight Attendants with Flight Attendants or AFA members from other airlines who are willing to temporarily house them. Please contact the CHAOS Help Line at 412-262-9223 if you are willing to house a stranded flight attendant.
 

Probationary Flight Attendants were called system wide by the CCC to discuss a list of issues that more seasoned Flight Attendants are already familiar with. Among those issues was a reinforcement that ALL employees, including probationary flight attendants, are covered by the Railway Labor Act to fully participate in legal CHAOS activities.

We urge all flight attendants to have educational and proactive conversations with our new flying partners. They have arrived at USAIRWAYS at a most difficult time. We all must watch out for each other and focus on the big picture before us: getting a Contract of Choice.

Commuters Needed
We are conducting the CHAOS Card Campaign in 21 cities system wide. Several commuter flight attendants have agreed to coordinate or participate in a city near them. Call the CHAOS Help Line to get involved, 412-262-9223.

CHAOS by Mail
CHAOS Tee-shirts are now for sale by mail order for $15.00. Call the CHAOS Help Line for details, 412-262-9223.

PHL Rally
The Pennsylvania State Federation of the AFL-CIO will meet in Philadelphia at the Franklin Plaza Hotel at 17th and Race Streets. this Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday.

On Tuesday, March 14th, at 12 noon the entire state labor convention will gather at the hotel, march to a USAIRWAYS city ticket office and rally in support of our contract negotiations.

All PHL flight attendants should plan to attend in your CHAOS tee-shirts. All flight attendants are welcome and encouraged to attend. Contact your local NSC coordinators for details.

Chaos T-Shirts and Buttons Up in the Air
Many labor groups around the country are aware of our situation in negotiations and want to help us. While you are flying you may see a paying passenger wearing a CHAOS tee-shirt or a button that says "I support the USAIRWAYS Flight Attendants". Please acknowledge these passengers and thank them for their support.

We thank the Communication Workers of America, PA Delegation for kicking off this effort. Over 80 tee-shirts were sold to the CWA. They wore them last week aboard USAIRWAYS flights. Some reports say that USAIRWAYS representatives temporarily lost their mind and attempted to tell paying passengers that they could not wear a tee-shirt on an aircraft. Nevertheless, the PIT ticket counter, gate areas and some aircraft were a sea of CHAOS green.

Metro Jet Canceled Trip Pay
BOS - MDW MetroJet flights were canceled after the trip pairings were built and published. The Company has agreed to pay protect the flight attendants who hold those trips in their block and fly the trip. The trips will be re-calculated for blockholders and reserves who use the bid sheet to pick up the affected trips.

BWI- and DCA-based flight attendants should look for a CBS message from the company that describes this issue. Call your Local reps if you have any questions.
 

We encourage you to print this *e-line* and share it with your fellow flight attendants or remind them to call the AFA Hotline, 1-800-654-3143 and/or CHAOS Help Line: 412-262-9223. Or visit us here at www.AFAUsairways.org.

Thanks for staying Informed.
Keep Committed. Fly Safe.

In Solidarity,

Lynn Lenosky
AFA USAirways MEC President

AFA Leaders Take Our Case to the White House
On Tuesday, March 7, 2000 AFA International President, Pat Friend and MEC President, Lynn Lenosky, along with key members of the AFL-CIO went to the White House to meet with advisors from the Clinton Administration to discuss our ongoing negotiations.

Additionally, our Union leaders are visiting Members of Congress and the Governors of the states served by US Airways. We are providing them with our side of our contract dispute story and voicing our objections to any government intervention in our negotiations.

Letters to Our Shuttle Members and Probationary Flight Attendants
Within the next couple of days our flight attendant brothers and sisters at the US Airways Shuttle and our newly hired, probationary members will receive a letter from Lynn Lenosky outlining their rights under the Railway Labor Act in the event we are forced to create CHAOS or the airline shuts down.

For the flight attendants working Shuttle flights, it's important to know that though they are currently covered by the Shuttle contract, this is a fight for their future, too.  Once these negotiations are over and an agreement is ratified, Shuttle flight attendants will be covered by the mainline agreement.

In the mainline contract talks, management is attempting to cut vacation and sick accrual and pay, cut other benefits and make flight attendants work more hours for less pay.

Regardless of whether you are a probationary flight attendant or flying US Airways Shuttle flights, you have the right and will be expected to participate in CHAOS strike actions if no agreement is reached by March 25, 2000.

Letter to Our Fellow Employee Groups
Lynn Lenosky also sent a letter to our fellow employees in which she characterized management's shut down threat as an attempt to drive a wedge between the flight attendants and the other work groups at US Airways. "This is a typical anti-union, anti worker strategy -- divide and conquer.

We also let the other labor groups know that the "parity" formula management is pushing on us is different than the formula many of the other employee groups decided to accept in their own contract negotiations.

In the contract negotiations for other employees groups, management ultimately allowed other union negotiators to participate in the development of the formula that was finally used in their "parity" calculation.

In our negotiations, however, management is attempting to force the flight attendants to accept the same formula for "parity" that was used in the pilots' contract.

We have analyzed the pilot formula and have determined that it is unfair when measuring the work flight attendants do.  For example, pilots do the same amount and type of work on each flight, and from airline to airline.

But flight attendants' work varies from plane to plane and route to route. There are a different number of flight attendants and differences in the amount and type of service we do. The management parity formula conveniently ignores these differences.

On top of that, management's "parity" formula for flight attendants conveniently ignores the fact that US Airways flight attendants handle 36% more passengers per hour than the flight attendants at the "composite carrier".

Concerns About a Possible Shutdown
AFA recommends that you call your Inflight Supervisor and ask for clarification on all shutdown related issues.

Because Management is threatening a shutdown of our company, many of your questions about the consequences of their actions should be directed to them.

If you have concerns about how you will get home from a trip or what happens if training is scheduled during a shutdown... call your supervisor.
 

If you are wondering:

What happens to vacation days during a lockout? Will all accrued and unused vacation days be paid?

About vacation pay?

Will crew scheduling call you if we are locked out? To avoid a No-Contact what do you do?

Do you need to inform the management of your taking alternate employment during a lockout?

What about medical insurance during a lockout? How do you get COBRA forms and information when the phone lines to Benefits Administration are always busy?

Call your supervisor or Inflight Administration.

Keep in mind that you should not discuss negotiations with you supervisor. It has been reported that supervisors have been attempting to draw flight attendants into one-on-one discussions on negotiations. If your supervisor attempts this, please advise them that AFA speaks for you.

AFA has heard talk that flight attendants will be protected under the sections of the contract that deal with furlough pay and recall rights. Please note that these provisions DO NOT apply in a lock out or shutdown situation.

Parity plus 1% the Movie
Once again management has attempted to negotiate directly with the flight attendant and bypass the Union. In the past they have used roadshows, newsletters, and letters to your homes. This time they have decided to send each flight attendant a video cassette.

Our suggestion for the proper handling of these videos is to destroy the video tape and return the cassette to a crew room or Inflight office trash bin.

This is your opportunity to show management what YOU think of their definition of "parity + 1 %".

Local Meetings
All local councils have scheduled meetings in the next two weeks. It is important you attend. This week, the BWI and DCA-Shuttle Councils have meetings scheduled for Friday, the 10th. Next week, CLT, BOS and DCA-Mainline have their meetings scheduled.

Please check your local AFA bulletin boards for local meeting times and locations. Or check here.

Also check for NSC and LEC contact information to sign up for picketing and other pre-CHAOS activities. Or go here to Sign Up.

Rally Info
There will be a rally in PHL on Tuesday, in conjunction with the Pennsylvania AFL-CIO state convention. Contact your local union office for details.

Thank you for staying informed.
Keep Committed. Fly safe.
In Solidarity,

Lynn Lenosky
AFA US Airways MEC President

Super Mediation to begin

The NMB just notified AFA that both parties are to begin "super-mediation" on Friday, March 17 at 10am in Washington DC. We will keep you updated as to any progress made.

Wilson Center Telephone Survey
In order to maintain a clear understanding of our members" concerns and opinions, AFA is conducting a random sampling telephone poll thru the Wilson Center for Public Research, a professional independent opinion research firm, starting Saturday March 4-8. If you are selected to participate, we ask for your cooperation with the pollsters. This confidential information is extremely important for your Negotiating Committee.

Look for Information Soon AFA will communicate by letter to:
Probationary Flight Attendants to help clarify their guaranteed rights under federal law to participate in a AFA-sanctioned strike.

Our fellow employees at USAirways. We believe it is important for them to have all the facts and not just the company's view.

All Flight Attendants: Information concerning your health care benefits in the event of a lockout. Look for information to arrive in the mail within the next two weeks.

More on "Parity plus one percent"
 

The Company Says:
We must accept their parity + 1 % formula for concessions or else the other labor groups will want to re-negotiate their contracts. The Company constantly reminds us that our agreement must satisfy the other labor groups.

AFA SAYS:
Every labor group must be free to negotiate their own agreement with the Company. This is the essence of collective bargaining.

There can be no undue influence from another employee group in our negotiations. The Company can not make a deal with another labor group which dictates what is in our contract; that would be illegal.

The Company Says:
There is only one parity formula that can be used to calculate parity for flight attendants. That is the same formula used for the pilots which is based on a pay to block hour ratio.

AFA Says:
The other groups were given the ability to choose a "parity" formula that worked for them. The pay to block hour ratio formula does not work for us.

The Company says:
The pay to block hour ratio formula accurately reflects what we do which mirrors the pilots.

Pilots generate block hours. They fly from point A to point B and their job is to increase aircraft utilization.

AFA SAYS:
There are major differences between the workplace environment of the pilots and the flight attendants:

Our job is to provide customer service. Our duties vary based on passenger loads, aircraft type, length of flight and type of service.

The pay to block hour ratio formula ignores the fact that we handle 36% more passengers per block hour than flight attendants at the airlines with which management wants to compare us.

We believe the pay-per-block-hour formula is not a fair way to measure what flight attendants do. It does not take into account the workload of the flights we work.

Shutdown Notices
As part of the Company's strategy to drive a wedge between the flight attendants and the other labor groups. Be aware that these shut-down notices are another part of the threat. Do not be surprised to hear more of the same as the "cooling-off" period continues.

Video
Once again management has attempted to negotiate directly with the flight attendant and bypass the Union. In the past they have used roadshows, newsletters, and letters to your homes. This time they have decided to send each flight attendant a video cassette.

Our suggestion for the proper handling of these videos is to destroy the video tape and return the cassette to a crew room or Inflight office trash bin.

This is your opportunity to show management what you think of their definition of "parity + 1 %".

Reserve Rescheduling Update
Crew scheduling is in the process of moving reserves' days off in March. They are rescheduling any non-inviolable days off after March 25th by moving them to days off prior to March 25th. According to crew scheduling, they are doing this to ensure coverage for the days after March 25th.

Apparently, senior management didn't tell Michael Scheeringa, VicePresident, Operations Planning, of plans to shut the airline down after March 25th absent an agreement with us. Or maybe they did and he didn't get the story straight. In any case, as per our contract, the company has the right to do this. They are restricted to moving no less than 2 consecutive days and they cannot move inviolable days. Please refer to sec 11-1, A.1 of the contract.
 

Correction to the latest Negotiations Update: MEC office telephone :412-262-3110
 

Local Meetings
Most local councils have scheduled meetings in the next two weeks. It is important you attend. Please check you local AFA bulletin boards for local meeting times and locations.

Also check for NSC and LEC contact information to sign up for picketing and other pre-CHAOS activities.
 

 
Local Meeting Schedule:

PHL - Council #70
Wednesday, 22 March, 5p - 8p
Thursday, 23 March, 11a - 1p and 5p - 8p
Friday, 24 March, 11a - 1p and 5p - 8p
The meetings will be held at the Comfort Inn - Philadelphia International Airport.
For airport pick-up call 610-521-8000 or call the hotel from baggage claim.

Council 41 DCA
Mainline
Monday, March 6th, 7-10 PM  - Hampton Inn in Alexandria
(formerly the HoJo's)
Tuesday, March 14th 11-2 PM - Days Inn - IAD
Thursday, March 23rd 11-2 PM  - Hampton Inn in Alexandria

Council 69  Boston
March 16. 11am-3pm at the
Holiday Inn Boston Logan Airport
225 McClellan Hwy.
East Boston Ma
617-569-5250

Council 83 DCA
Shuttle
Friday March 10th 11:00-3:30
Guests include Ed Gilmartin @ 11am & Laurie Borman@ 1:30
 

Council 87 BWI
Two (2) LEC meetings
March 10, 2000.
Times:  2pm & 6pm
Location:  Comfort Inn Airport.
Phone:  410-789-9100

COUNCIL 89 CLT
MONDAY MARCH 13,2000
7:30AM-9:30AM
11:30AM-1:30PM
3:30PM-5:30PM

WEDNESDAY MARCH 15, 2000
7:30AM-9:30AM
11:30AM-1:30PM
3:30PM-5:30PM
7:00PM-9:00PM

FRIDAY MARCH 17, 2000
7:30AM-9:30AM
11:30AM-1:30PM
3:30PM-5:30PM

WHERE:
AIRPORT AUDITORIUM

 

Stay Informed. Keep Committed. Fly safe.
In solidarity,

Lynn Lenosky
MEC President

The Company Says
The Company has said that the Association of Flight Attendants is asking that the Company "treat one employee group more favorably than another." They have also said that the principle of parity is simple and focuses on fairness for all employee groups.

About Fairness
Fairness? No other group has a parity agreement which affects as much of their contract or is as detrimental to them as what the Company is trying to push on us. For most other groups, parity represents an improvement.

Do you wonder how a company obsessed with fairness for all employee groups can deny flight attendants access to the benefits of the Family Medical Leave Act?

Do you wonder how a company obsessed with fairness for all employee groups can penalize married flight attendants in the way their pension is figured?

Or do you wonder how a company focused on fairness for all employee groups, can reward its top managers with industry leading pay and benefits and still ask its flight attendants for severe concessions?

This Company is NOT concerned with fairness for this employee group: the flight attendants.

Problems with the "Composite Carrier"
The Company promotes their composite carrier concept, to which we would be compared, as their way of doing us a big favor. The composite carrier model is, however, unpredictable at best and sinister at worst.

American and Northwest flight attendants are involved in contentious contract negotiations. Their final agreements can only be speculated about.

The flight attendants at United, Mr. Wolf's alma mater, face negotiations on wages which may wind up at an arbitrator. Nobody knows the outcome of that situation. Delta, which at the start would make up more than half of the composite carrier formula, has non-union flight attendants. To agree to accept anything based even partly on what they get is foolishness. Delta's management can change their flight attendants' compensation and benefits at will.

Is is "fair" to tie our contract to such an unstable environment?

The Company's proposal also fails to acknowledge the fact that US Airways flight attendants handle 36% more passengers per block hour than flight attendants at the airlines with which management wants to compare us.

Isn't it "fair" to be compensated for working harder?

No Complete Company Proposal Yet
In over three years of bargaining, management has never put a complete contract proposal on the table.

The Company has said, "The details of how (parity) is achieved are not dictated by the company. Our employees through their union representatives determine the specifics of compensation that work for them," she said.

The National Mediation Board, however, directed US Airways to present a wage proposal. It has yet to materialize.

Mr. Wolf said US Airways will do "everything in our power under the auspices of the National Mediation Board during the next 30 days to reach a resolution that works for our flight attendants and works for our company."

Could this include presenting a complete contract proposal?

Why A shutdown?
By using the scare tactic of a shutdown, Wolf and Gangwal are posturing to convince the White House that "self-help" at US Airways requires the appointment of a Presidential Emergency Board (PEB). A PEB has the authority to achieve an agreement that is arbitrated and imposed, rather than negotiated and ratified.

First, the National Mediation Board must determine that a job action threatens "substantially to interrupt interstate  commerce to a degree such as to deprive any section of the country of essential transportation."

Second, the NMB must notify the President of this finding and he may "in his discretion create" a PEB. All strikes,  regardless of how limited or extensive, obviously cause an interruption to interstate commerce. A PEB is only appointed when that interruption is so severe as to cause a section of  the country to lose "essential transportation."

CHAOS has been built upon our awareness of this provision of  the Railway Labor Act. Thus, we have never proposed a strategy that would cause the type of disruption to interstate commerce to justify the appointment of a PEB.

Management wants to pervert the intent of the RLA. After a 30 day "cooling-off" period, while CHAOS is designed to pressure the company by causing a minimal amount of inconvenience to most passengers, management wants to go on strike and inconvenience all passengers.

Those in US Airways hub cities would be especially threatened by a total disruption of service. A management shutdown would obviously create an interruption of interstate commerce to a section of the country to a much larger degree than what we plan with CHAOS.

Why A Presidential Emergency Board?
The Company would welcome a PEB because management would never have to present a full proposal to flight attendants. No new negotiations would have to take place. Instead, a new, extended 60-day "cooling-off" period would start.

During the first 30 days of that period, the PEB would hold arbitration-type hearings and would issue its recommendations to resolve the dispute.

Another 30-day cooling-off period would then commence in which we may be given the chance to vote on the recommendations.

But even if we get to vote on PEB recommendations, our vote may be of no consequence. In situations where recommendations of other PEBs have been rejected, Congress typically has intervened and passed legislation enacting those recommendations into law.

This process makes negotiations futile and would effectively silence the voice of US Airways flight attendants.

So when the company says that the shutdown is done in fairness to the customer, don't you believe it. The company is not only encouraging a Presidential Emergency Board, they are practically coercing one from the government.

Our Plans
Our plans ensure that passenger inconvenience will be minimized. The impact of CHAOS will be felt almost solely by the company. AFA is working to ensure that the White House and Congress understand how US Airways is attempting to abuse the law and avoid direct negotiations.

We've fought for over three years to negotiate a contract that's best for us. We should be able to determine the provisions of our contract, not a government board.

Your MEC and AFA's International Office will continue to prepare for CHAOS. When the National Mediation Board calls the parties back to the table for "super-mediation", which we fully expect to happen during the thirty-day "cooling-off" period, your Negotiating Committee will be fully prepared.

And our focus, as always, will be a Contract of Choice.

However, we must prepare for Wolf and Gangwal to refuse to reach an equitable agreement with us and follow through with their threat to destroy the airline and inconvenience the traveling public. You should expect the company to keep making this and other threats.

Remain calm, committed and stick together -- for a Contract of Choice.

Stay Informed. Keep Committed. Fly safe.
In solidarity,

Lynn Lenosky
MEC President

Rather than deal with the Association of Flight Attendants' strike action known as CHAOS™, the company announced in a news release and letter to all employees that they have chosen to take the most extreme and drastic choice available to them under the Railway Labor Act. In the event they have not reached an agreement with us by March 25, 2000 the company stated that it intends to shut down operations.

It is quite apparent that this is an attempt on management's part to scare the employees of USAirways. This action is seen by industry analysts and reported in the media as "posturing" and  "the dance of negotiations". This type of fear and intimidation can be a powerful thing, but only if you believe it.

AFA is dismayed that the company would announce this bizarre decision at the very beginning of the 30-day countdown. The company would rather lose millions and millions in revenue than spend one of those millions on addressing our issues or improving our quality of life. As the clock ticks down to March 25th AFA's plan is to stay on course. We will continue to prepare for CHAOS™, and if and when called back to the table by the NMB, negotiate for the "contract of choice" on your behalf.
 

Countdown Begins
The 30-day "cooling-off" period has begun. The National Mediation Board announced yesterday that flight attendants can begin CHAOS™ strike actions at US Airways as early as 12:01 a.m. (EST), Saturday, March 25, 2000. During the 30-day period, the NMB generally makes another attempt to resolve the dispute in so-called "super mediation". At the end of the 30-day period, if no agreement has been reached, the company is free to impose new work rules and conditions and we can engage in self-help. For AFA flight attendants, that means CHAOS™.

With 99% of our members voting to support a strike, if necessary, US Airways now must choose. Our goal is a "Contract of Choice", but we are ready to create CHAOS™, if that's the path US Airways chooses.

A330 Staffing
The company is currently conducting training for the Airbus A330 aircraft. Section 29-General, page 29-1, C.1. of our current working agreement allows the company to place new aircraft into service irrespective of the contract duration. Additionally, this paragraph stipulates that the rates of pay, rules, and working conditions are subject to negotiations.

Please be advised that pay premiums and staffing for the international and domestic flying associated with this aircraft are being discussed in our current negotiations.

CHAOS™ Card Campaign
Volunteers from around our system, clad in bright green T-shirts, are conducting the CHAOS™ Card Campaign. This activity, designed to collect passenger information for notification purposes in the event we have not reached an agreement with USAirways management, will continue for the duration of the countdown period.

Only NSC volunteers are permitted to distribute and collect the passenger information cards. In the event a passenger attempts to give you a card while working, please advise him/her to either mail the card to AFA or give it to an airport volunteer. Under no circumstances should you distribute or collect these cards while working.

The Latest Information
Within the next week you will receive, via US mail, more detailed information concerning CHAOS™. Additionally, your LEC may be conducting special union meetings. Please make it a point to stay informed.

Message from the MEC President
For over three years we have been struggling to achieve a contract that reflects our contributions and commitment to this company while management continues to demand concessions from every single flight attendant at US Airways. With the announcement of the NMB's decision to release us into a 30-day "cooling-off" period, we will now enter the final step in the negotiations process under the Railway Labor Act.

This will be one of the most stressful and tumultuous times of our careers. We must prepare ourselves for whatever management throws our way in their attempt to distract us from our goal. It will be our collective strength and solidarity that will see us through these times.

I am personally asking that each one of you make a commitment to stay informed, get involved and get ready regardless of our personal circumstances. This is a fight that belongs to each and every one of us. There is at least one job or task waiting for each of us in our battle for the "Contract of Choice". Contact your local Union office and offer your time and talent.

I would also like to take this opportunity to thank the many volunteers who have dedicated countless hours and days to supporting these negotiations. You have my sincere appreciation.