3.25.20 – LOA Update from National President on Pay Protections

Wednesday, March 25, 2020

Dear Fellow Flight Attendants,

The changes keep coming and I have something new to announce regarding pay protections that go up and above our JCBA (contract) for both March and April 2020. We have worked very hard the last few days to negotiate a Pay Protection Letter of Agreement (LOA) that has the unanimous support of our Board of Directors and protects the majority of our work force. We know that you have watched your bid award schedules be decimated with multiple cancellations and modifications taking place in real time. It is disarming and stressful to see our work disappear before our eyes. This LOA will cover all March Non-IPD sequences and all April 2020 flying including IPD for lineholders. Click here for March-April Lineholder Pay Protection LOA.

Believe me when I tell you that this agreement was not easy to come by, and I want to thank both our Union representatives and our Company counterparts who worked with me for days and hours on end to hash out and finalize an agreement that we believe provides protections for the majority of our members.

We are working on a communication piece to send out with this LOA but you can read the LOA via the link above. The communication will contain useful examples and a Q&A section that will answer your questions and clarify various situations. Please refer to the Q&As before calling your Base leaders, as they are inundated with so much during this COVID-19 crisis. But rest assured your APFA Local and National reps are here for you, should you need additional guidance on this or any other issue during these unusually unsettling times.

Also, in the last few days…

• All Flight Attendants may wear masks (neutral in color)
• VLOAs (monthly) are now open for April for everyone through March 30
• Extended leave options of 3-6-9-12 months with medical benefits are open through March 30
• The company-provided VEOP option is extended through March 30
• On-board services have been temporarily discontinued or modified to minimize contact

We are closely watching the stimulus bill as details are unveiled that will affect our work force as it moves through both houses for a vote. We are also working on a COVID-19 Letter of Agreement that memorializes guidelines, pay, and protections for our members. And your incoming National Officers are being transitioned.

In the last few days, both Dallas County and Tarrant Country have issued orders for Shelter in Place. Therefore, our office building in Euless has been shuttered for the first time in our history, with all staff and union representatives working remotely. This will not impact the service we provide for our members.

A lot has been tossed our way since the Coronavirus entered the scene. And to our credit, Flight Attendants rise to the occasion. Still we go to work. Still we tend to our families’ needs. Still we offer professional service to our customers. We will come out on the other side of this with the resilience that is bred in each and every one of us. That is who we are. Stay strong.

In Unity and Solidarity,

Lori L. Bassani
APFA National President