A Little Q &A
You Ask Questions, We Offer Answers
A Little Q &A from 2018
You Asked Questions, We Offered Answers
Sam Acacio: Candidates running for all office. What are your stand on the uniforms? What are your views when someone shows up to work in Twin Hill. It's been 2 years now since the rollout? How do you process that some are affected by the uniforms and others not to the extent. How do you view those that show up in Twin Hill and don't appear to be affected to date.
Let's Clean House: The uniform issue is a decade in the making and should have been stopped by APFA when American decided that it was cheaper to have our uniforms made countries in that (1) ban labor unions and (2) exploit children in manufacturing. Now that we're about to have the new Land's End uniforms made overseas, the question you should be asking is whether they'll be any different?
I should note that the uniform issue was a BIG campaign issue in 2007 and again in 2012 when APFA was caught manufacturing APFA promotional products (pillows) in China for their PAXforPAX "Peace for Passengers" campaign in 2010.
Simply put, APFA was asking members to hand out union promotional products that they had made in a country that (1) doesn't allow labor unions and (2) still utilizes child labor in their manufacturing, in an effort to complain about a unionized job and the benefits that come along with being unionized.
The reason for the "Peace for Passengers" campaign was to complain about the $400 million in executive bonuses that were handed out to top execs after the APFA overturned the memberships' NO vote in 2003. They wanted passengers to feel sorry for us, but they didn't. The campaign was a disaster.
The point here is that a labor union has an obligation to support other labor unions. The idea that APFA would outsource the manufacturing of the promotional products to China and have them affixed with the union logo defies logic.
We believe that our "union" uniforms should be made in a "union" shop here in the USA, not in countries that still utilize child labor in their manufacturing. We campaigned on this issue in 2008 and 2012.
APFA's explanation of the "Peace for Passengers" campaign:
"Attendants passed out travel pillows stamped with the address for their Internet site, paxforpax(dot)com. The site, which is called 'Peace for Passengers,' makes a case for improving attendant wages and working conditions, and attempts to enlist passengers to send comments to the airline.
"Since the 2003 concessions, which kept American out of bankruptcy, many attendants have complained about longer work days and less rest time between flights, as well as no meals during long shifts. Because of wage cuts ,many work more hours each month to keep from falling behind.
"'It's become a much more difficult job,' [said Diana Dunn, a 21-year American flight attendant who is also an official with the Association of Professional Flight Attendants, the union that represents American attendants.]"
http://bit.ly/2GLE0nn
Elizabeth Abreu Guerrero: Question for all candidates. How will you change or improve Reserve?
Let's Clean House: Sam Morales said it best: "The way to fix Reserve is to make it desirable. There's no reason why Reserve needs to be a punishment."
That said, there's many who would like to commute in, work hard, and go home. And if you give them an override (incentive) if they fulfill the month, many would opt for it. Junior people may even have trouble holding it. And the bonus paid would come from the savings delivered. It's a win-win!
http://letscleanhouse.org
Looking at Samuel Morales' 1998 Willingness to Serve Statement, which put him on APFA's Negotiating Team "Team 2000" (delivering us the best contract in APFA memorable history), it's amazing to see how accurate Mr. Morales was. And to think that he was Sidelined during bankruptcy because union governance (Leadership and the Board) didn't want to negotiate with OUR employer but rather someone who didn't employ us.
It is well known that F/A morale has been at an all time low after the 1993 strike. My wife and I who are both AA F/A's have found ourselves on reserve, like so many of us, with no end in sight. Our quality of work and pay has suffered tremendously. Everywhere I turned there were no solutions from the Company or Union and I heard it all. i.e. "quit if you don't like it", "you should have thought about having children before you accepted this job" and "transfer to New York".
I believe my 13 years as a line F/A and my educational background qualifies me for the position of domestic negotiator. I have seen, heard, and experienced the many injustices of reserve and scheduling. Moreover, I am not a union insider and bring a fresh approach to "the real issues" that are representative and substantive.
ISSUES of importance our T/A failed to address:
— Reserve as it stands MUST BE CHANGED!
— Good for the last 5 days of the month on availability will NOT work!
— 5:00 hr. average, LIKE THE PILOTS!
— Appendix-T should be IMPROVED, not tossed!
— Profit Sharing MUST stay!
— Full pay and credit for VMC!
— Pro-rated vacation, LIKE THE PILOTS!
— Full pay for standby duty!
— Real pay raise!
— Better retirement!
— Livable work rules & contract language!
— TEST initiatives MUST go!
In summation, we have many issues that need to be resolved and I am confident if elected, we can achieve these "GOALS".
Remember, it is WE, YOU, and I working TOGETHER, that form this Union!
I THANK YOU for your TIME, CONSIDERATION, and RESPECTFULLY ask for your VOTE!
http://votesam.org
Kelly Matthews: I am curious to know if any are passionate about getting our retiree medical back? When I look up retirement eligibility in JetNet I saw this sentence, "Management and Support Staff employees who separate with at least ten years of credited service and are at least 55 years old will have access to American's Pre-65 Medical Plan." Is it possible to demand we be given the same benefits? What are your thoughts?
Let's Clean House: One of the main reasons we filed the DOJ Complaint was because Laura Glading gave away our Retiree Health Benefits (and Pension Contributions) by negotiating with someone who did NOT employ us. She should have been negotiating with Tom Horton, not Doug Parker. Every decision Glading made was to help Doug protect his investors -- not us. That's why it's so important to remember who "endorsed" Laura Glading. Putting her teAAm back in there ins NOT the answer.
https://callingonthedoj.wordpress.com
Jon Alman: There was an earlier question about Letters Of Agreement. What is your feeling about the so-called "Bassani Letter"?
Rock Salomon: It's not the "transfer" that raised so many eyebrows but rather the special treatment Ms. Bassani was afforded by the company/union in the wake of the massive givebacks APFA had offered up against the memberships' NO vote. While some will say Ms. Bassani was "helping fellow F/As to transfer." in truth Ms. Bassani was helping herself after being replaced as APFA Communications Coordinator by George Price (Liz Geiss' boss).
"'By ratifying this agreement, we will be giving up a great deal to try to keep our airline out of bankruptcy,' [Basssani] said. '[Overturning the memberships' NO vote] signals our willingness as employees of this airline to step up and do our part to save our company.'
"Although APFA's leaders had recommended approval, union officials also complained Wednesday that American representatives violated labor rules by passing out information and lobbying flight attendants to approve the concessions."
https://cnn.it/38bSLxa
Cliff Jones: To all candidates, What do you feel is the main reason the moral among APFA members has declined!
Let's Clean House: "There is only one thing more painful than learning from experience, and that is not learning from experience."
15 years, 3 concessionary contracts, 2 overturned NO votes, 3 agreements reached by means of collusion, 2 contracts involving nepotism.
Is it "experience" or rather a "pAAinful experience?
http://bit.ly/2u0yDOM
Dale Dreyer: Candidates, what are thoughts on reaching out and communicating to the other unions on property?
We tried to get the three labor unions to work together during bankruptcy by they were all hell-bent on total capitulation. I recommend watching the video.
http://bit.ly/2z8WsGd
Cristina Delafuente: What about our jumpseat exception from weight & balance?
We used to be excluded from the weight & balance as jumpseaters so we could never be bumped off.
The Company took that away from us.
Any candidate think its important enough to negotiate it back?
Rock Salomon: The question would best be addressed by the two candidates involved in the Settlement:
"The ultimate victory would have been to restore the jumpseat weight and balance provision. However, such restoration was not possible, since the only issue before the arbitrator was the timing of when the weight and balance provision would be eliminated.
"Roger Holmin
"Kim Kaswinkel
"Nena Martin
"Glenda Talley"
http://bit.ly/2Gbu6h9
Connie Germond McCord: So candidates, What say you?
How about we see how much more the $$ it's going to cost the membership for furnished Apartments (utilities included) for all the new Officers and Dept. Chairs that don't live in DFW. I'll tell you it's impossible to be an effective Officer for the membership while maintaining a home/personal life if you commute. Especially from the West Coast or any coast.
It cost on average $1800-$2000 p/month plus furnishings "per" apartment. All Officers live in DFW now. That's an additional $48,000 per apartment for two yrs.
I'll edit since I can't respond to the candidates.
This was brought up in Clt when the budget was proposed for approval that only 2 apts are currently being used.
So all of you candidates are you going to move to dfw ? Or are you going to commute and cost the members more money because you didn't want to move to dfw? It's a 24/7 operation and the Apfa executive board should be available 24/7 too.
What will you be doing if elected?
Let's Clean House: I never understood why the union "rented" the apartments rather than just pay for them. Most companies pay an allowence and the employee/consultant uses the allowance and offers receipts for reimbursement. This limits liability (and cost) on the part of the company while giving the employee/consultant personal options to accommodate the stay.
For this term, it's best just to go with what's there. There's a war to fight and little time for setup.
Niko Gutierrez: Why do we still employ the lawyers that have , for lack of a better word or an explicit one, underperformed at crucial times and what do you plan to do about it?
Lets Clean House: "To be clear, if elected the first item on the agenda will be to fire the attorneys, consultants and advisors who stood behind the collusion and nepotism that defrauded us during the bankruptcy/merger and then had the audacity to deliver us a ZERO-SUM contract in 2014 like somehow we wouldn't notice. Yep! You're Fired!
"Next up will be to replace those attorneys-consultants-advisors with a new team of professionals who are going to help us "solve" some of the staggering problems facing the APFA membership in the wake of that aforesaid collusion and nepotism. " - Samuel Morales, Candidate for APFA National President
http://letscleanhouse.org
Amber De Roxtra: Hello. IF elected, what would be your top 3 priorities to address/tackle once in office?
Let's Clean House: (1) FIRE FIRE FIRE Glading's attorneys, consultants and advisors and replace them with a new team of professionals. (2) Work with the newly retained professionals and the APFA Board of Directors to put in place an organizational strategy that will place APFA on "offense" rather than "defense." (3) Set the strategy in motion by using the many other issues (uniforms, HARD 40, imposed contract, stolen retirement benefits, etc,. etc.) to place pressure on American's Board of Directors, which will then place pressure on American's executives.
There's lots more, but you only asked for "top 3."
http://letscleanhouse.org
Patt Bruns: If elected Rock, how will you strategize against this Union buster! What does the first day look like?
Let's Clean House: The VP doesn't hire the "strategist," Patt Bruns, or handle the "strategy." That's the president's department, which is why a SLATE is so important.
That said, as a former presidential candidate I tried to bring Liz Geiss, Laura Glading and myself together during the bankruptcy election. I thought if we all came together that we could fight back during bankruptcy. In the end, Liz didn't want my support (which led to her loss) and Laura was only interested in helping Doug Parker and Scott Kirby merge the airlines. Protecting OUR careers wasn't part of the equation.
An excerpt from my Proposal to Liz, Laura and the APFA Board:
"If the Liz Geiss slate wins, Laura Glading will remain on the job and be involved in every aspect of the bankruptcy proceedings, Her running mates will also remain to assist her or the union in other ways whether they be assigned to work with the LA/CCI team, lawyers representing the APFA, or in some other capacity.
"If Laura Glading wins, Liz Geiss and her running mates will continue to work full time in some capacity to increase and coordinate membership involvement in every aspect of strengthening our union, advocating for our members, and building our union contract.
"Ultimately the best option for the membership as a whole would be if one slate bowed out based on the ideas outlined in this proposal. In doing so we can begin the process of preparing our union for the fight ahead thus making our union more unified and stronger than ever.
"In closure, we strongly urge the APFA Board of Directors to consider this proposal and convince their respective parties to do the same."
https://bit.ly/2n3dKvl
Elizabeth Louise: Candidates: so you feel the concern of the LUS flight attendants that we feel totally unrepresented by our Union? How do you plan to see that our voices are heard?
Let's Clean House: There's only 2 slates in the election (Bassani, Morales) and only 1 slate has LUS represented in the lineup (Morales). What makes this lineup work is that all four candidates share the same philosophy. In other words, we're not 2 philosophies merged together to garner votes.
The merged philosophy strategy delivered us the 2003 Restrucuring Agreement, and as you know that agreement gutted LAA's 1998 Agreement (aka 2001 Contract) by 33% against the members' NO vote.
http://letscleanhouse.org
Sandi Gee-Baldonado: I will ask this question - what good does a presidential grievance do after AA imposes what they want that continually violates the JCBA? How do you stop AA from imposing violations in the first place?
Let's Clean House: The question I always ask is: How can you grieve the terms of a contract that was (1) the product of collusion and (2) forced upon members against their NO vote? You can't. The contract is worthless, which is why it needs to be challenged in its whole rather than in part.
http://www.letscleanhouse.org
Nena Scott: My question to the Candidates..are you in favor of this bill? And what are you willing to do to further advocate for 10 Hrs behind the door as well as the Fatigue Risk Management Plan that is the same as the Pilots?
Yes, for clarity, I've reposted information from the AFA site. As they have been advocating for this.
"Federal Aviation Administration's (FAA) funding and policies will be extended to October 1, 2018, under a broad spending bill expected to become law on Friday to keep the government open. The FAA's authorization has been extended temporarily for months at a time since last year. This short-term extension gives Congress through September to draft and pass a long-term FAA policy bill.
The House and Senate bills will be rewritten over the next few months into a four year FAA Bill. The 10 hours minimum rest as well as a Fatigue Risk Management Plan will be in the final version of the long-term bill as long as we continue to hold lawmakers accountable with our action."
Let's Clean House: You and 15 others manage the membership and posts for AA-Ask the Candidates!
The problem with rest is that the government NEVER imagined that a labor union would forfeit contractual rest and opt for the governmental minimum as APFA did in 2003. That was unthinkable. The 8 hour rule was simply in event that there were extenuating circumstances that resulted in reduced rest. Prior to 2003 a flight attendant might see minimum rest once a year for one night -- not an entire bid sheet dedicated to fatigue as APFA leadership agreed to against the members NO vote.
http://www.letscleanhouse.org
DeMetrius Burrell: On a daily basis the membership goes to the Official AA Facebook to seek guidance on contractual and legality issues that should be addressed to and answered by the union. The union Facebook page was shut down in favor of a "live chat" function. I always believed that if one person has a question 100 have the same question. Communication between the union is lackluster at. best and always seems to be a "cut and paste" of company email. What are the candidates plan to insure communications between the union and membership is improved and membership have access to officers to support them with contractual issues and social media engagement.
Let's Clean House: If memory serves me the APFA Facebook "page" is still live and the APFA "Q&A" group was closed because of membership dissent. Rather than addressing membership concerns, the APFA decided that stifling members was easier. The group was a battleground for those who supported Glading's collusive agreements and those who didn't.
https://facebook.com/groups/APFAQAs
DeMetrius Burrell: I would like to repost this question to Rock Salomon since you really didn't answer the question regarding what you plan is. You only mentioned collusion contract. My question is specific.
On a daily basis the membership goes to the Official AA Facebook to seek guidance on contractual and legality issues that should be addressed to and answered by the union. The union Facebook page was shut down in favor of a "live chat" function. I always believed that if one person has a question 100 have the same question. Communication between the union is lackluster at. best and always seems to be a "cut and paste" of company email. What are the candidates plan to insure communications between the union and membership is improved and membership have access to officers to support them with contractual issues and social media engagement.
Rock Salomon: Obviously, I understand communications; my Facebook page has 52,332 likes. But the VP isn't in charge of communications; the Communications Director is appointed by the President and overseen by the Secretary.
While I plan to play an active role in communications (if elected), it's not the VP's primary function. That's why a slate is so important -- you need a President and Secretary with the same views on progress.
I will agree though, communications have been nothing short of lackluster given that we've endured three concessionary contracts in 15 years while facing reports of unprecedented profits from management.
One thing Samuel Morales Donald LeBlanc, Randy "RJ" Johnson and myself agree upon is that the officers can't disappear after being elected. That's not what "transparency" means. Once elected, your name doesn't change to "Casper" like we've seen in the past.
From the APFA Constitution:
"The National President shall nominate, and the Executive Committee shall confirm or reject, individual active members in good standing to serve as National Chairs.
"The National Secretary shall establish and maintain lines of communication between members of the Executive Committee, Base Representatives and all administrative departments and committees. "
https://facebook.com/Crew-Juice-188249054993
Stephanie Bogert Steinruck: Are any of you willing to hire professional contract negotiators instead of electing flight attendants to do this and the elected flight attendants could consult with the professional contract negotiators?
Rock Salomon: I don't believe we need "professional negotiators" as much as we need lawyers who can write a contract that doesn't look like Swiss Cheese. Case and point:
I once had an issue with a miss-trip because I didn't call scheduling. When in read contract, the contract states I "shall" call scheduling, but it didn't say I "should" or that I "must." When I asked APFA about the language they told me that it's commonly agreed by the company and union that "should", "shall" and "must" all mean the same thing -- "must." When asked why they just didn't use "must," the answer was there was no answer.
If we're gong to be dealing with Jerry Glass then we need a strategist who understands how Jerry Glass thinks. That's why Samuel Morales wants this guy (Ray) handling strategy for us.
Susan Lovett: Are any of the candidates going to seek having our pensions unfrozen with these record profits we are making? We should have a retirement waiting for us in the end!
Let's Clean House: That was the whole point of asking the DOJ to look at our case: our pensions were frozen under the guise of necessity when in reality it was collusion and nepotism that froze them. Rest assured, if Samuel Morales and I are elected we'll be looking to thaw those pensions.
https://callingonthedoj.wordpress.com
