3.06.19 – APFA Weekly Scoop – Aflac Benefits Enrollment/Spring Forward This Weekend – Primary Vacation Bid Award

Wednesday, March 6, 2019

APFA Board of Directors Annual Convention

APFA Leaders are in Boston this week for the 2019 APFA Board of Directors Annual Convention. Members in good standing are welcome to attend all open portions of the meeting. Full minutes of the meeting will be available on the APFA website within 30 days.

Enrollment for Aflac® Supplemental Benefits Closes Friday, March 22nd

APFA Self Enrollment Portal for Aflac® Supplemental Benefits
Aflac® Appointment Scheduler
Aflac® FAQs

Daylight Saving Time 2019: Time to Spring Forward This Weekend

Daylight Saving Time (DST) starts for most of the U.S. on Sunday, March 10, at 2:00 AM.

In addition to setting clocks and watches ahead one hour, check your smoke alarms this weekend.

Daylight Saving Time ends at 2:00 AM on Sunday, November 3, 2019.

– Robin Charbonneau, APFA Communications Chair, [email protected]

2019-2020 Primary Vacation Award

The 2019-2020 Primary Vacation Bid Award is now available for viewing.

FAPortal.AA.com > Monthly Bids > PBS Base/Non PBS Base > Vacation > Annual > Summary

To view your award details, go to the AVBA summary page (select the Annual tab) and click the Show Detail button next to Primary awards.

A pop-up window will appear displaying the details of your award. It will indicate the ballot and bid each award came from.

The Secondary Vacation Bid process allows you to bid for any remaining vacation days not awarded in the Primary Bid period and/or carry forward days. In the secondary bid period, you may only be awarded from the remaining dates shown as available for your base. You will be awarded at your seniority until all of your vacation days are exhausted or the system is unable to satisfy any more of your preferences and then you will be assigned (after all secondary bids are awarded).

When creating your Secondary Vacation Bid, remember the following guidelines:

If you were awarded a block of 1, 2, or 3 vacation days from the primary bid, you should not bid any additional 1, 2, or 3 day blocks in the secondary bid, unless you only have 3 or less days remaining to bid
You may bid for filler days in the secondary bid, as long as you were not awarded your maximum allowable filler days in the primary bid
Vacation days not awarded in the secondary award, due to incorrect bidding or insufficient bids, will automatically be assigned
Secondary Vacation Bid Opens on March 6th
Secondary Bid Closes on March 13th
Secondary Bid Award & Assignment Process – March 20th

All open, close and award times for these processes above are Noon DFW.

Vacation Support Contacts:

Flight Attendant Bidding Resource Center (FABRC): 1-888-376-5375
Vacations Administration: 1-800-VIP-CREW option #, 8
Email: [email protected]

– Erik Harris, APFA National Contract Chair, [email protected]
– Becky Lydecker, APFA National Scheduling Chair, [email protected]

The Flight Attendants in Recovery (FAIR) program was collaboratively developed and launched in October of 2016 by APFA EAP Specialist, Abby Alconcher and Optum EAP Manager, Jim Ward. The purpose of this program was to confidentially support Chicago-Based Flight Attendants who are recovering from substance use disorders.

Flight Attendants have unique occupational challenges. Flight Attendants have a greater chance of sustained sobriety when they take ownership of their recovery, understand our unique workplace obstacles and have tools to cope with those obstacles. Who knows better what the challenges are and how to acquire recovery techniques/principals than Flight Attendants already in stable recovery.

The FAIR program now has a track record of successfully supporting Flight Attendants in recovery in ORD, LAX and MIA. Our next target base will be PHL and then CLT.

FAIR is part of the APFA EAP Department. The sole purposes of the program are peer support and members adherence to strict confidentiality requirements. We meet once a month and encourage members to attend these meetings in conjunction with their other recovery/aftercare meetings. Each group is facilitated by an APFA EAP representative and may be co-facilitated by an Optum EAP Manager or other certified/licensed substance abuse/mental health practitioner. This is a support group, which is strictly voluntary and confidential.

Learn more about the FAIR program by clicking HERE.

If you are interested in attending a meeting at one of these bases, please call APFA EAP at (817) 540-0108 extension 8701. You may also email Abby Alconcher at [email protected] or Heidi Sakacs at [email protected].

– Abby Alconcher, APFA EAP Specialist, [email protected]

Save Money on Your Prescriptions and Refills

Prescription drugs can cost a lot of money. How do you know if what you are paying is really the best price out there? Luckily, there are three (3) mobile apps that can help us take out some of the guess work, so we can possibly save money. All three apps use your device’s GPS or your zip code to show the nearest pharmacies that stock your prescription, and the price. So, the next time you need to fill a prescription, see if the apps listed below can save you money.

OneRX
GoodRX
WeRX

– Michael Tipton, APFA National Health Chair, [email protected]

Required Equipment

Please ensure that you are in possession of all required equipment when reporting for duty. In the event that you find that you have inadvertently worked a leg without it, obtain a replacement before flying another leg. A list of required equipment can be found in the IFM under:

General Policies & Procedures > Reporting for Duty > FA Equipment and Documentation

Remember that the Cabin ASAP Program is a great way to report inadvertent violations of regulatory requirements. Cabin ASAP reports can be filed from your FA Tablet and from the FLT SVC website under Safety & Security with the Cabin ASAP link.

Customs & Border Protection Bag Search/Questioning

APFA continues to receive reports from Flight Attendants arriving into the United States from foreign ports, stating they are being subjected to increased bag searches and questioning. Crew Members have reported that the Customs Officers are stating the company has asked them to perform these searches, and report their findings to American Airlines. We have been in communication with the company and they have advised APFA that they have made no such request(s) of CBP.

Please continue to provide the specific details below should you experience these issues when clearing on an international arrival:

Flight number & date
Arrival station
Officer’s name & badge number
Officer’s comments regarding search / questioning

– Jeffrey Ewing, APFA National Safety & Security Chair, [email protected]

Air Carrier Training Aviation Rule Committee

APFA is currently the only appointed Flight Attendant member of the Air Carrier Training Aviation Rule Committee (ACT ARC), a working group that periodically reviews and provides recommendations to the FAA. The ACT ARC has examined Crew Resource Management (CRM) and most recently looked at the risk that high energy battery fires pose in the cabin. Recommendations on both issues have been submitted to the FAA.

On February 27th, the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) issued an interim final rule that prohibits passenger airlines from carrying rechargeable lithium-ion cells or batteries as cargo, noting their potential for causing uncontrollable fire in cargo holds. The rule does not restrict passengers or crew from bringing on board personal electronic devices containing lithium-ion batteries.

The potential for a catastrophic loss of an aircraft, the need to harmonize U.S. regulation with international standards and the statutory deadline in the FAA Reauthorization Bill all contributed to the immediate adoption of this change.

– Allie Malis, APFA National Government Affairs Representative, [email protected]

Joint Collective Bargaining Agreement (JCBA) with Letters of Agreement

The JCBA, now including Letters of Agreement, has been posted to:

APFA.org > Know Your Contract > JCBA > Resources > Joint Collective Bargaining Agreement with Letters of Agreement

All language of the JCBA has been implemented, with the exception of DFW and MIA bases. Provisions not implemented for DFW and MIA Flight Attendants are listed on inside cover and will be implemented on May 2, 2019
Language that is modified by a Letter of Agreement (LOA) is indicated by red ink (if added) and ~~struck-through~~ (if deleted)
Modified paragraphs or provisions are indicated by change symbol (Δ), including the number of the corresponding LOA contained in the back of this version (ex: Δ L-20)

We will continue to update this electronic version, as necessary.

– Alin Boswell, Julie Hedrick, Linda Haertling, Vicki Balistreri, APFA Joint Scheduling Implementation Committee, [email protected]

As of today, there have been 4,970 Flight Attendants who have filed uniform reaction reports.

Please continue to utilize the Uniform Reaction Report Form on the APFA website if you experience a suspected reaction to your uniform.

Posted in Hotlines - 2019 and tagged Weekly Scoop

3.06.19 – APFA Weekly Scoop – Aflac Benefits Enrollment/Spring Forward This Weekend – Primary Vacation Bid Award

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