Union Members at American Get $3,000 Bonuses This Week

Union Members at American Get $3,000 Bonuses This Week

May 21, 2020 | American, COVID, Featured, Featured News, Front Page, Home, Organizing | 1 comment

Honoring Agreements, Union Members at American Get Bonuses This Week

Bonuses budgeted before the coronavirus pandemic spread widely in the United States are scheduled to go out today and tomorrow to union members in fleet service and aircraft maintenance at American Airlines. (The International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers and the Transport Workers Union represent workers at American in an alliance known as “The Association.”)

Qualifying fleet service workers will receive $3,000 signing bonus checks this week. 

To qualify for the payments, every union member must have been an active employee at American as of March 26, 2020. Union members on certain types of company and military leave will get the money when they return to work.

The agreements also call for cash payouts because of improvements in vacation accruals, which will add thousands more in retroactive compensation for some members.

The money will be paid out like regular paychecks. Statements showing the deposits should be visible in bank statements starting today.

The bonuses are part of agreements between American Airlines executives and their unionized fleet service workers, which were ratified by over 90% of eligible voting members of the IAM and TWU Association on March 26th. In a joint statement released after the agreements were reached, Sito Pantoja, Association Chairman, and Alex Garcia, Vice Chairman said: “Together, after more than four years, the terms of these agreements are proof that we took the right path and achieved the best contracts in the airline industry.”

Mike Klemm, President and Directing General Chair of District 141 of the IAM said that given the current status of the airline industry and the bleak forecasts, union members at American would be well-served if they are cautious about how they use their bonus paychecks. Echoing statements he made in a letter to IAM members at United Airlines, Klemm noted that without a substantial increase in demand for air travel, “furloughs at every US-based airline at the end of September are almost certain.” He added: “I urge you to save as much of this earned bonus as you can, and spend some time in the next few months to prepare for the storms we see forming on the horizon. We can only hope it turns out to be rainy days and not a tsunami, but our union will be with you and will use every resource at our disposal to defend your rights and your livelihoods, just like we did when we reached these historic agreements with American Airlines.”

Employees of American Airlines may submit questions about this payment via the company’s Payroll Service Center, at psc@aa.com.

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A Slow but Steady Airline Recovery is Happening

A Slow but Steady Airline Recovery is Happening

May 20, 2020 | Airlines, American, COVID, Featured, Featured News, Front Page, Home, Home, MNPL, Uncategorized, United | 1 comment

Shares of several airlines have seen a sharp increase in value over the past week, as more travelers begin a slow return, prompting carriers to add more routes and flights to their schedules. While overall demand remains at critical levels, we now have the first clear evidence that the airline industry is beginning to heal from the COVID pandemic. 

In March, Congress approved $50 Billion in aid to airlines, to preserve the highly-trained (and difficult to replace) commercial aviation workforce. Congress also hoped to protect the larger civil aviation networks that provide life-sustaining economic connections throughout the American economy. 

All major airlines have warned that absent another round of help from Congress, America will have a much smaller capacity for air transport and travel. Further, if the direst warnings coming from industry insiders are borne out, the American economy could lose more than a third of the entire civil aviation workforce in the space of just a few weeks starting in October.

Such a massive reduction in jobs would not only cripple any recovery this fall but would also have catastrophic ripple effects throughout the rest of the economy, as businesses that depend on airlines and air shipping lose access to critical parts of their business.

Last week, the industry got a few hopeful signs that air travel would return. United, American, and Delta are filling planes, and are considering adding back flights. Currently, airlines are only operating at certain times of the day, in schedules called “banks.” United and American have both reported that they are bringing back a few banks in select hubs that were stopped due to low demand. The latest round of inevitable social media outrage saw shocked Tweets revealing images of airplanes full of passengers. This may have horrified the Twittersphere, but it was cause for celebration for everyone that depends on air travel. Figuring out how to handle too many passengers is a good problem for airlines to have right now.

Along with passengers, investors are also starting to come back.

Shares of United Airlines Holdings Inc. were up 2% in premarket trading on Tuesday, extending a larger 21% rally for the week. The posting represents the largest gains since the COVID pandemic began hitting airlines two months ago.

United reported modest improvement and reduced cancellations during the second quarter, improvements that the company expects to continue through July.

American Airlines experienced a brief 9.2% surge last week, led by upbeat new data from TSA that indicates an increase in travel demand. That report detailed an uptick in passengers overall, showing an average of 205,010 passengers a day going through TSA security checkpoints. This is the fourth straight week that the agency reported an increase.

Overall air traffic is down more than 91% from last year, according to the TSA reports.

The largest transportation and aerospace union in the US is the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers, which includes tens of thousands of airline personnel. IAMAW District President Mike Klemm warned the 38,000 members of District 141 that investor support and passenger demand might not return fast enough to prevent job losses in October.

“To be perfectly clear, if demand for air travel does not rebound before September 30, 2020, there likely will be furloughs at every single US-based airline,” Klemm said while promising that the union would prevent involuntary furloughs that violate union contracts and the terms of the CARES Act. IAMAW ramp and customer service workers successfully fought back a plan by United to force furloughs after accepting $5 billion in taxpayer money intended to prevent job losses. 

The union is also proposing several cost-cutting measures to United, including ways to incentivize early retirement through medical bridges. These voluntary measures, along with increased demand for air travel, are welcome signs. 

However, IAMAW District Legislative Director Dave Roderick is also suggesting that the union stay in constant contact with lawmakers. “We need to stay in the conversation,” Roderick said. “We need to make sure that our members of Congress understand the facts from the union perspective, which is the side that clocks in and out every day to put food on the table. We can’t afford to be passive at this moment. We need to stay engaged, and do whatever we can to impress on lawmakers the importance of passing another assistance package before October,” Roderick said.

 

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The Time to Prepare is Now

The Time to Prepare is Now

May 19, 2020 | American, COVID, Featured, Featured News, Front Page, Home, Home, Uncategorized, United | 2 comments

May 19, 2020

This communication will discuss continuing developments at United Airlines, however, I urge all District Lodge 141 members to read this update. 

Regrettably, United Airlines and District 141 have disagreed vehemently on how to handle the steep decline in demand for air travel due to the coronavirus pandemic. On May 1, 2020, United Airlines announced an involuntary furlough of approximately 14,000 full-time fleet service and customer service employees, which would have caused a pay and benefits cut, and also multiple violations of our contracts.

As you know, United management reversed course after DL 141 filed a lawsuit in federal court affirming that the forced reductions were both a violation of the CARES Act and our collective bargaining agreements. I want to be crystal clear: The May 1st Greg Hart and Kate Gebo plan to involuntarily furlough every full-time employee to part-time WAS NOT allowable under our collective bargaining agreements. And, it WILL NOT be allowable at any future date. If Mr. Hart and Ms. Gebo attempt this ill-advised action again, you can count on IAMAW District 141 to fight it with every available resource our union possesses.

Over the past couple of weeks, United has resorted to coordinated scare tactics and misinformation to get as many IAM-represented workers as possible to take a voluntary COLA. I informed United management numerous times to stop threatening IAM members with illegal and non-contractual involuntary furloughs. Finally, last week at a virtual town hall, SVP of Airport Operations, Jon Roitman, stated there will be no involuntary furloughs through September 30, 2020. We’ve said all along that this is something United management could not do. 

We fully understand that we need our carriers to be successful for everyone to maintain their ability to put a roof over their head and food on their families’ table. District 141 stands ready to engage with United to develop voluntary programs to achieve cost savings and to put together a long-term plan that benefits employees and our airline. Since our lawsuit was withdrawn, United management has not engaged with District 141. United management should understand that by working with us, we can devise creative ways to help the carrier and, at the same time, care for United employees who have turned this airline around and who are bravely serving our country every single day by providing essential services.

To be perfectly clear, if demand for air travel does not rebound before September 30, 2020, there likely will be furloughs at every single US-based airline. 

The number of laid-off employees will be determined by the demand for air travel, and also by the level of participation in voluntary COLA and other separation programs. I sincerely ask that you prepare for a potential furlough in October. Please hold off on buying any new big-ticket items, such as a car or house. I hope you will take every step you can to help save money for yourself and your family. It is very rare to have five to six months to prepare for a furlough, so I hope everyone will use this time to take the necessary precautionary steps.

Please know that the IAM is fully behind you and we will do everything possible to defend ALL IAM members and our families at our airlines during this time.

God bless and stay safe, 

Mike Klemm

President and Directing General Chair,
District 141,
International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers

 

 

 

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TWU / IAM System Seniority Protest

TWU / IAM System Seniority Protest

May 13, 2020 | American, Row 2 | 0 comments

As required by the recently ratified Association CBAs, American Airlines has posted the updated seniority lists for all classifications. That posting can be found on JetNet at https://people.aa.com/sm/reports/twuiam_seniority/.

Association represented employees may protest any omission or error, which they believe affects their seniority, within thirty (30) days of the posting. Timely submissions received on or before Monday June 15, 2020 will be reviewed and a final determination of seniority, adjustment or denial, will be binding on the parties. Keep in mind that all seniority dates prior to September 16, 2016 were subject to an earlier final and binding protest process. All seniority determinations will be recorded and final revised seniority lists will be posted by the Company. Any employee on leave at the time of posting will have a period of thirty (30) days from his/her date of return to service to file a protest.

The process for submitting all seniority protests is contained on the attached form. Submissions may also be made by email to the following addresses:

TWU M&R Protests may be sent to: AAMaintprotest@twu.org

TWU MLS Protests may be sent to: AAMLSprotest@twu.org

TWU Fleet may be sent to: AAFleetprotest@twu.org

IAM Fleet Protests may be sent to: IAM_Seniority_Protest@iamdl142.org

IAM Mechanic & Related, MLS and MTS Protests may be sent to: IAM_Seniority_Protest@iamdl142.org

      Additional Materials

AA Fleet Service Master Seniority List >

Association Seniority Protest Form >

Javits Memorandum >

TWU / IAM System Seniority Protest

Information for American Airlines Fleet re: 2020 Agreement

Apr 7, 2020 | American, The Association | 0 comments

Attention TWU and IAM members:

  1. Persons who are members of either the TWU or IAM shall remain members of their respective union and will pay dues to that union wherever they may work or whenever or wherever they may transfer within Association covered workgroups or CBAs.
  2. New hire employees into any Association covered position shall become members of the union assigned representation responsibility for the location in the Allocation charts and will remain members of that respective union whenever or wherever they may transfer within Association covered workgroups or CBAs.
  3. Preferential hires, meaning those who were hired under the preferential hiring agreement prior to ratification of the JCBAs and joined the union opposite from their original union, shall remain members and pay dues to the union they were represented by and belonged to on the date of ratification. Should any of those preferential hires desire to revert to membership in their original union, he or she shall advise the Local officers of the union they are currently a member of, in writing and within thirty (30) days, that they wish to revert their membership.

 

Adopted April 7, 2020.

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TWU / IAM System Seniority Protest

Association Bulletin – Implementation Agreement Reached

Mar 27, 2020 | American, Featured, Front Page, Home, Home, The Association | 0 comments

March 27, 2020

Implementation Agreement Reached

The Association and American Airlines have reached an agreement covering the implementation of certain elements of the JCBAs. The following items cover pay, retirement, and certain benefits that are most important to our membership:

1. All JCBA wage rates will be effective the first Monday following the date of ratification (“DOR”), inclusive of

  • Chart Rate
  • All Premiums
  • Skill Pay
  • Fuel Tank Entry (which will be paid as a temporary upgrade)
  • MLS Driver Premium (which will be paid as a temporary upgrade unless a separate MLS Driver bid area is established)
  • Taxi & Run-up Pay (which will be paid as a temporary upgrade unless a separate Taxi & Run-up bid area is established)
  • Shift Differential (Shift differential for Legacy American TWU employees will be programmed at JCBA rates following ratification but will continue to be based on shift definitions under the 2012 AA/TWU CBAs until those employees are moved to the Work Brain system. JCBA shift definitions will apply to all covered employees thereafter.)

2. The Signing Bonus Payment agreed to by the parties shall be paid no later than 60-days after the DOR to all active employees as of DOR. Employees on an approved leave of absence or not working due to OJI shall receive the Signing Bonus within 45-days of returning to active status.

3. The Vacation Lump Sum Payment (to eligible employees) agreed to by the parties shall be paid no later than sixty (60) days after DOR.

4.  All other pay elements not provided for in paragraphs 1, 2 or 3 above will be paid, retroactively to the first Monday following the DOR (in a lump sum equivalent), within one-hundred twenty (120) days after DOR, but in no event more than one-hundred (150) days, and thereafter will be paid on a continuing basis as described in the JCBAs.

5. The IAM National Pension Plan contribution rates provided for in Article 30 – Retirement shall be effective no later than May 1, 2020. The employer matching contributions and employer nonelective contributions provided for in Article 30 – Retirement shall be implemented no later than January 1, 2021. For the time period from May 1, 2020, until such time as the employer matching contributions and employer non-elective contributions provided for in Article 30 – Retirement can be made effective for employees covered by the JCBAs, but no later than January 1, 2021, the following will apply:a. TWU Designated Employees will receive contributions to the 401(k) Plan in the amount of 9%; no employee contribution will be required; and will not receive any employer matching contributions to the 401(k) Plan.

b. IAM Designated Employees will receive employer contributions to the 401(k) Plan in the amount of 4%; no employee contribution will be required; and will not receive any employer matching contributions to the 401(k) Plan.

c. The employer contributions provided for in paragraphs 5) a. and b. above will be made to employees on a monthly basis and will be made after the last pay period of each month.

For example, contributions for eligible compensation earned in May will be contributed in June. These contributions will be reflected in employees’ Fidelity 401(k) statements but will not appear in the employees’ Company payroll statements.

6. For 2020, profit-sharing for each participant covered by the JCBAs will be calculated on a prorated basis, using the profit-sharing calculation currently in effect for employees represented by the Association up to the DOR and using the profit-sharing calculation provided for under the JCBAs for the remainder of the year.

7. All grievance settlement monies owed to the TWU/IAM Association as a result of joint negotiations shall be paid to the Association within 30 days of receiving payment instructions from the Association, following the DOR.

8. The parties recognize the importance of the seniority provisions and applications of the JCBAs, such as rebids, realignments, shift bids and transfers, reductions in force and agree to preserve and utilize employees’ seniority during the implementation process. The parties also acknowledge the need to combine overtime and field trip call-out procedures into a single system and to allow shift swaps/trades between employees under their respective JCBAs; therefore:a) Local management and Association representatives will work together to implement the overtime process outlined in the respective JCBA as soon as practicable in each location.

b) Field trips will continue to be called out in the same manner as they have been prior to the ratification of the JCBAs until such time that the Company and Association agree to a single system Field Trip call list.

c) Local management and Association representatives will work together to implement the shift swaps/trades as soon as practicable in each location. The Association agrees to work collaboratively in order to assist the Company with the implementation of these JCBA provisions.

9. The M&R International outsourcing provisions shall become effective April 1, 2020, upon which the annual 12-month lookback will be based. The data used to determine the initial International Outsourcing hours measurement to be sent to the Association no later than June 1, 2020.

10. Legacy American TWU employees’ sick bank shall be credited with up to ten (10) days no later than December 31, 2020, based on any ten (10) months in 2020 where at least 80 hours were worked by the respective employee.

11. The payback period for employees who elect to take a ‘loan’ due to the change to pay-in-arrears or bi-weekly pay shall begin no earlier than February 1, 2021. The Company may change employees to pay-in arrears and bi-weekly pay, where applicable, as soon as is practicable.

The impact of the serious COVID-19 pandemic on the operation of the Company has created uncertainty in the ability to predict exact implementation dates for some contractual items the Company is obligated to institute. Therefore, the parties have agreed to meet within 60 days after ratification and on an ongoing basis to reach agreement on any implementation issues that are outstanding after the date of ratification and are not addressed in the Implementation Agreement reached today.

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While we expect to reach mutually agreeable terms that would cover any outstanding implementation issues after the date of ratification, the Association has not waived any of its rights to resolve disputes that may arise, including the grievance procedure.

 

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