6.14.20 – APFA CLT Base Brief – Sunday, June 14, 2020

Sunday, June 14, 2020

CLT Flight Attendants,

The past few months have seen massive changes for our company and the industry as a whole. We are unsure as to where this is all heading or even if we will be employed here in the months to come. It would be nice if we had a crystal ball and could foresee the future, unfortunately, all the ups and downs in the industry in the last 20 years does not qualify anyone to make accurate predictions for the future. We know many of you want to know about possible furloughs and any future restructuring. What we know today is the way our airline performs in the next few months will determine our ultimate fate.

During this time, we have seen the need for more direct communication from your Union. For the last few weeks, we have been testing a concept we call the virtual base brief. The virtual brief is a Zoom meeting with your local Charlotte reps. It has been very successful, and we want to extend it to everyone in our base. The concept is a weekly update that allows for interaction in an informal and personal format during this COVID-19 pandemic. Our current reality does not allow for a large base gathering.

The Zoom format is informal, as this is not a base meeting. An outline, agenda, and questions are provided. We then do our best to address the issues as well as give a rundown of updates we have available. The meetings have been about an hour-long, and while we still have some bugs to work out. The format has been successful, and it has been enjoyable to see everyone’s faces without a mask.

One of our goals is to improve the communications between you and your Union. For several months we were relying on social media to provide base briefs and answer questions. We know many Flight Attendants do not use social media, which will allow everyone to get updates and interact with their local reps. The traditional written base brief will still be provided as our goal is to create our own email list of members and create a faster way to disseminate information with CLT-Based Flight Attendants. Things were moving so fast for a few weeks. There was a lot of confusion and misinformation out on the line. As we navigate the next few months, we want to provide the most up-to-date information to help our members plan for any ongoing changes.

We are planning on the next virtual Zoom meeting on Friday, June 26th, with a time to be determined. If you would like to join us, send your preferred email address and employee number to [email protected]. We will send an email invitation before the virtual brief with a link to the zoom meeting. If you know other Flight Attendants who may also want to participate, tell them to send their information over to us.

---

Unemployment

Unemployment questions continue to roll in. With many of us taking advantage of the PVLOAs, the flood of applications to the state have created a whole slew of problems for workers in NC. We are supporting our fellow unions in an attempt to strengthen the unemployment process. We are providing two links for petitions to State officials to help make changes to the unemployment process in NC.

• https://actionnetwork.org/letters/leave-no-worker-behind-4
• https://actionnetwork.org/letters/workers-compensation-for-covid19/

 

If you have a denied unemployment claim, send the denial to us. We are asking the Company to investigate denials and we can do our best to walk you through the appeals process. If you have not filed yet, send us your email and we can send a manual and frequently asked questions to help prepare you for the process. We also encourage you to visit AA CLT/RDU Flight Attendant Unemployment Support on Facebook. You can ask questions and gain insight as you navigate the process. Also, visit the APFA Unemployment Resources page for more information.

---

June Pay Protections

June Pay Protections will be processed in the same way as the May bid month. If a trip cancels, Crew Scheduling with place an XR code on the HI1 next to the trip. If any of this trip operates, you will be pay protected for the trip if another crew flies a portion of the trip. If the trip cancels in its entirety, the code is changed to an XI code and you lose your protection for that trip. This is where the total pay protection for the month through the Letter of Agreement can help to offset the loss. Remember, if a portion of your trip is protected by a crew substitution and you choose to fly additional time over the footprint of that trip, you must pick up from TTS/UBL only. Picking up from the ETB will negate the pay protection for the original trip.

---

Web-Based Training (WBT)

As a reminder, the Minimum Crew Requirements Web-Based Training (WBT) module must be completed by June 30th.

To access the WBT module, go to Jetnet > Learning Hub.

---

In closing, there is an Executive Committee meeting and a Board of Directors briefing this week in Dallas. We will do our best to keep you up-to-date on any information that is shared.

We hope to see you all at the next Zoom virtual base brief.

In Solidarity,

Scott Hazlewood, APFA CLT Base President, [email protected]
with the Charlotte APFA Team