1.13.06 – (LAA) – Officers of APFA, APFA, and TWU Meet with AA to Get Answers Regarding 973 Management Cash Bonuses, International Proffer Preferences

This is Tommie Hutto-Blake, APFA President, with the Hotline message for Friday, January 13, 2006.

Last evening, officers of APFA, APA, and TWU met with senior management in an effort to acquire straightforward answers and clarifications regarding the 973 management cash bonuses scheduled to be paid out in April 2006. The leadership of the three unions on AA’s property have met extensively during the week in preparation for this face-to-face meeting.

There are no immediate conclusions to report as a result of this preliminary fact finding meeting except the parties have agreed to schedule further discussions on this issue after reviewing the information disclosed by both labor and management.

Your leadership has heard your justified indignation about these cash payouts to certain select individuals. I want to assure you that your outrage is shared by the APFA leadership and the leadership of the APA and the TWU. We are standing solidly together on this issue.

When APFA agreed to ‘join forces’ with fellow labor unions on AA’s property to work with management on ways to turn our company around, no one was foolish enough to believe there would not come a time when this relationship would be tested. We are there.

During this last year we have witnessed and experienced the successes that occur when we join together in shared goals and focus our collective energy on a desired outcome. At times we have forged respected relationships and achieved solid results, together. We have done some good work and have made remarkable strides in our pursuit to protect the viability of our company.

Labor acknowledges the fact that Gerard Arpey cannot turn this company of ours around alone. He needs an energized team – from top to bottom. What labor is saying to the AMR Compensation Committee and top management leadership is – Don’t destroy the collective spirit of the thousands of front line workers by this selective act. Further, will this act be at the expense of the Company as a whole?

The decisions made in the weeks ahead will be setting the labor/management tone on AA’s property for years to come. We have a chance, together, of not only restoring this company to sustained profitability, but capturing the confidence in the entire market that when a company treats its unions as true business partners the company can and does succeed.

The entire leadership of APFA will be coming together for the annual convention next month. I would urge each of you to let your thoughts be known to your base leadership. They will be representing your interest during this APFA annual business meeting. Senior management is also scheduled to be present for open dialogue between the parties on the last day of the annual meeting. Our collective voices must be heard!

Your APFA leadership will keep you updated as this overarching issue is either resolved or becomes the wedge between labor and management here at AA.

And now stay on the line for the remainder of today’s news. Leslie…

This is Leslie Mayo, National Communications Coordinator, with the APFA Hotline for Friday, January 13, 2006. Due to attrition, we now have 4,070 furloughed flight attendants and 10 members serving full time in the military. Please keep them in your thoughts.

APFA Watch : International proffer preferences were purged on January 6. If you are interested in proffering to an international base, you must re-enter your proffer request in Sabre. The IOR proffer announced last week will close at 0730 Central Time on Friday, January 20.

Preliminary sick and vacation accrual information has been posted in individual HISK/L’s. Please confirm your accrual and report any discrepancies to your local base payroll coordinator to be corrected prior to the final posting on January 17.

The Honolulu layover hotel informed us that they would not be able to provide enough rooms to accommodate all of our crewmembers each night. APFA, along with APA and AA focused on a second hotel around the area of our current layover hotel. Please check the APFA Web site – Hotel Department link for details. We will be using both hotels for our layovers.

The APFA Annual Convention will begin on Monday, February 20, 2006, in Los Angeles. All members in good standing are welcome to attend. Please check the Web site for details and special room rates. We will continue our new tradition of training seminars and booths on the first day of the Convention. Plan to join your fellow APFA members at the Annual Board of Directors Convention next month.

Bankruptcy Watch : ALPA, the union representing the pilots at Northwest Airlines, has stated that if Northwest goes forward with a plan to create a subsidiary designed to operate 100 jets with between 76-100 seats, the pilots will strike. Northwest claims that a pilot strike would not be legal if the judge agrees to impose terms under Northwest’s 1113c filing.

United Airlines says they’re ready to exit bankruptcy on or around February 1st after three years under its protection. The Bankruptcy Judge still has to sign off on the company’s exit plan following a hearing on January 18, 2006.

Fuel Watch : As of January 10, crude oil was $63.37 per barrel, up .58 cents from last Wednesday’s price. The crack-spread price was $9.05, down about $4.92 from last week’s price. Therefore, the price of one barrel of jet fuel as of January 10th costs $72.42, down $4.34 from last week’s price.

And finally, Matt Long, a New York City Firefighter, owner of Third and Long in New York, and longtime friend of AA Flight Attendants, was struck by a bus while riding his bike to work during the NY Transit Strike last month. He is badly in need of blood donations. Please go to www.nybloodcenter.org for more information and to make an appointment to donate blood. You can also donate from any city by simply informing the bank that you wish to donate on behalf of Matt Long, FDNY group #43369. Matt’s involvement with Wings and AA Flight Attendants began years ago with the monthly donation of his bar, Third and Long, to the Wings and Badges fundraisers and the Heart Ball, as well as agreeing to be one of the bachelors auctioned off for a date during the 9/11 party held in New York City in March of ’02 that generated thousands and thousands of dollars for our fallen crewmembers.

That’s it for this week. Thanks for calling the APFA Hotline.