Vaccine Mandates: Association Response

Vaccine Mandates: Association Response

WATCH: Passengers Delay Evacuation to Collect Personal Items From Overhead Bins

WATCH: Passengers Delay Evacuation to Collect Personal Items From Overhead Bins

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Don’t be these people. Panicking passengers evacuating a Spirit Airlines flight are seen ignoring instructions from flight crews during what appeared to be a fairly minor (if alarming) emergency. Some of the passengers evacuating after an engine fire took time to get their belongings from overhead bins, refused to remain seated and tried to give commands to trained flight crews.

WATCH: Passengers Delay Evacuation to Collect Personal Items From Overhead Bins

Passengers on a Spirit Airlines flight leaving Atlantic City in New Jersey were evacuated after a sudden engine fire broke out seconds before the plane was to lift off the runway. No injuries were reported, and all 109 passengers and crew were evacuated, although with disturbing safety failures.

The incident happened Saturday as Spirit flight 3044 was preparing to leave for Fort Lauderdale, Fl. According to the airline, “what is believed to be a large bird” was sucked into the engine just as the plane was about to leave the ground, forcing pilots to abort the takeoff. Cellphone video of the scare has gone viral. 

“The captain braked safely, received an indication of damage to the engine, and ordered an evacuation in accordance with our standard procedures,” read a statement from a Spirit spokesperson. “All Guests and Team Members evacuated the aircraft and were bussed back to the terminal.” The passengers were given full refunds for the flight, which was canceled, and vouchers for future flights. 

The FAA is currently investigating the incident. 

Safety Advocates with the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers who reviewed passenger videos of the evacuation found several disturbing failures took place. Chief among them were passengers who slowed the evacuation of the flaming aircraft to collect belongings from the overhead bins – thus trapping everyone on the plane behind them. 

Pilots could not return the plane to the gate until firefighters had extinguished the engine. This forced the flight crew to evacuate passengers on the tarmac using inflatable slides deployed from either side of the aircraft. In the video, flight attendants can be heard clearly and repeatedly calling for passengers to remain seated, only to be ignored almost entirely. However, according to IAMAW District Safety Director Erik Stenberg, what many passengers did next was potentially much worse. Some passengers actively delayed the evacuation to collect their luggage and personal belongings from the overhead bins. 

“We work with Flight Training and Emergency Procedures Instructors regularly,” said Stenberg. “Crews and instructors practice using these slides. Some people have suffered broken bones going down these slides with nothing at all in their hands,” he said. “And, these were not even real emergencies. These were simulations where everyone was thinking clearly and were calmly following standard operating procedures.” 

“So, even if you get your luggage, you can’t safely get down those slides with it.” 

This behavior slowed down the evacuation, Stenberg said. “The fire itself wasn’t much of a risk by that point,” he said. “Fire crews were already activated, and the flight was on the ground.” According to Stenberg, who has been involved in union-side safety programs for decades, the real risk to passengers came from other passengers ignoring flight crew instructions. In fact, notes Stenberg, “it looked like some people were panicking and trying to take control over the evacuations themselves and away from trained flight crews. They were trying to give the flight attendants commands instead of following instructions.” 

While he noted that flight attendants could have gained more control of the situation, Stenberg said that the incident offered many lessons for passengers. Principally, the importance of carefully listening to (and following) pre-flight safety instructions. “I know we all like to ignore the flight attendants when they tell us what we should be doing in an emergency,” he says. “But, we should pay more attention. This incident is a perfect example of what happens if we’re unprepared.”

“The time to react to an emergency is before it happens,” Stenberg said.

Mike Klemm, District 141 President, on NBC Nightly News Discussing Vaccine Mandates

Mike Klemm, District 141 President, on NBC Nightly News Discussing Vaccine Mandates

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IAMAW District President and Directing General Chair, Mike Klemm was among those calling for United to use incentive programs before terminations at United.

Mike Klemm, District 141 President, on NBC Nightly News Discussing Vaccine Mandates

IAMAW District 141 President Mike Klemm was among those interviewed in the aftermath of United Airlines’ decision to fire nearly 600 employees who refused to get vaccinated and did not obtain a religious or medical exemption. 

Unions around the nation are facing vaccine mandates, including professional athletes, actors, Flight Attendants, Pilots, and others. To date, no unions, lawmakers, government officials, or organizations have successfully prevented employer vaccine mandates.

The position of the IAMAW District 141 is that employer vaccine mandates are unnecessarily provocative and divisive. They should not be used until an honest, good-faith effort to employee incentive programs has been tried first. IAMAW District 141 is planning to use the Grievance process to defend the contractual rights of any workers who lose their jobs as a result of vaccine mandates.

Spirit Airlines Negotiations Update

Spirit Airlines Negotiations Update

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Spirit Airlines Negotiations Update


September 29, 2021

 Dear Brothers and Sisters, 

As you are aware, Spirit Airlines has advised you of their request for Meditation Services. We are disappointed that the airline has decided to take this position. The IAM and your negotiating team have been working hard on your behalf and were approaching the compensation portion of the negotiations. As the Company stated in their communication, there exist only a few remaining areas of disagreement, making the decision by the company all the more frustrating. 

Rest assured that, even in meditation, the IAM will continue to seek industry-standard compensation for its members at Spirit Airlines. Any compensation offer falling below acceptable industry standards is an insult to our members and obviously unacceptable. Your continued support is needed now more than ever. We look forward to the response of the National Mediation Board, and we will respond accordingly. Your negotiating team will continue to keep you updated. 

Fraternally, your IAM District 141 negotiating team: 

Michael G. Klemm

Tony F. Gibson 

Gregory De La Cruz

Almarie Jean

Linda Germain

Christopher Willis 

 

Recording Secretaries: Please print and post on all IAMAW bulletin boards.

DOT Fines United Airlines $1.9 M for Holding Passengers on Tarmac Too Long

DOT Fines United Airlines $1.9 M for Holding Passengers on Tarmac Too Long

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DOT Fines United Airlines $1.9 M for Holding Passengers on Tarmac Too Long

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From DOT.gov

The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) today fined United Airlines $1.9 million for violating federal statutes and the Department’s rule prohibiting long tarmac delays.  The airline was also ordered to cease and desist from future similar violations.  This is the largest fine issued by the Department for tarmac delay violations.  

An extensive investigation by the Department’s Office of Aviation Consumer Protection (OACP) found that between December 2015 and February 2021, United allowed twenty domestic flights and five international flights at various airports throughout the United States to remain on the tarmac for a lengthy period of time without providing passengers an opportunity to deplane, in violation of the Department’s tarmac delay rule.  The tarmac delays affected a total of 3,218 passengers.

Under the DOT tarmac delay rule, airlines operating aircraft with 30 or more passenger seats are prohibited from allowing their domestic flights to remain on the tarmac for more than three hours at U.S. airports and their international flights to remain on the tarmac for more than four hours at U.S. airports without giving passengers an opportunity to leave the plane.  The rule prohibiting long tarmac delays for domestic flights took effect 2010 and was expanded to include international flights in 2011.  An exception exists for departure delays if the airline begins to return the aircraft to a suitable disembarkation point in order to deplane passengers by those times.  An exception to the time limit is also allowed for safety, security, or air traffic control-related reasons.  The rule also requires airlines to provide adequate food and water, ensure that lavatories are working and, if necessary, provide medical attention to passengers during long tarmac delays.

DOT’s aviation consumer protection website makes it easy for travelers to understand their rights.  The page on tarmac delays can be found here.  Consumers may file an airline complaint with the Department here.

The consent order is available at https://www.transportation.gov/individuals/aviation-consumer-protection/united-airlines-consent-order-2021-9-21

United Delays Action Against Employees With Medical or Religious Exemptions

United Delays Action Against Employees With Medical or Religious Exemptions

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United Delays Action Against Employees With Medical or Religious Exemptions

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Facing a lawsuit filed by six United Airlines employees, the carrier has announced that it will postpone the decision to place those with medical or religious exemptions on unpaid leave until October 15. Employees who were denied an exemption have been given individual vaccination timelines from the company, which have not changed. Those who never placed a request for reasonable accommodation must have proof of first vaccination by today, September 27.

The lawsuit is not challenging the vaccine mandate at the airline and is not seeking to delay or stop the requirements that all 67,000 employees at the airline must be vaccinated by today. Instead, the lawsuit asks a Texas court to force the company to revise its “Reasonable Accomodation” policy for those who qualify for medical or religious exemptions. According to the complaint, the existing reasonable accommodation policy discriminates against specific disabilities or religious beliefs. If successful, the lawsuit will require United to allow unvaccinated employees with a medical or religious exemption to remain on the clock and submit to regular testing and masking rules instead of unpaid time off.

However, federal law also allows a company to deny a request for accommodation if doing so would impose an “undue hardship” for the employer. United argues that allowing unvaccinated employees to spread the deadly COVID-19 virus at work represents an undue burden to the airline. Therefore unvaccinated employees must be separated from the rest of the workforce.

“Given our focus on safety and the steep increases in COVID infections, hospitalizations and deaths, all employees whose request is approved will be placed on temporary, unpaid personal leave on October 2 while specific safety measures for unvaccinated employees are instituted,” United said in a September memo to employees. “Given the dire statistics…we can no longer allow unvaccinated people back into the workplace until we better understand how they might interact with our customers and their vaccinated co-workers.”

According to the complaint, the airline violates Title 7 of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Americans with Disabilities Act by denying pay to unvaccinated employees who are not permitted to enter the workplace.

The lawsuit states that “United’s actions have left Plaintiffs with the impossible choice of either taking the COVID-19 vaccine, at the expense of their religious beliefs and their health, or losing their livelihoods.” It goes on to argue that, “In doing so, United has violated Title VII and the ADA by failing to engage in the interactive process and provide reasonable accommodations, and also by retaliating against employees who engaged in protected activity.”

One of the plaintiffs, Debra Jennefer Thal Jonas, who works as a Customer Service Representative at the United Club at DFW airport, has requested both religious and medical exemptions from the vaccine policy. Ms. Thal was granted a medical exemption but has joined the lawsuit because United did not provide her a way to file a second request on religious grounds.

Another plaintiff, Flight Attendant Genise Kincannon, was granted a religious exemption but is joining the suit because she feels that unpaid leave is unreasonable and a violation of her rights under Title 7 of the Civil Rights Act.

The union representing flight attendants at United, the Association of Flight Attendants (AFA), has said that it will not assist members that apply for vaccine exemptions, saying that the process should be a “private matter.”

At a time when mixed messaging can have devastating results, United has struggled to find a consistent narrative on the subject. In January, United CEO Scott Kirby said United could not realistically mandate vaccinations unless other airlines and companies do the same and require their employees to take them as well. By this summer, Kirby had changed course and implemented the most sweeping vaccination requirements of any of the Big Three carriers at the time. United Ground Express, a wholly-owned subsidiary of United Airlines, first told employees that there were no plans to require vaccinations, then changed course less than a month later. United first told employees that they would have to be “fully vaccinated” by September 27. The company is now telling employees that they only need the first shot by that date.

The position of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers union is that vaccine mandates are unnecessarily controversial and should not be used until a good faith effort to employ incentives has been tried first. Throughout this process, United Airlines has failed to provide clear communications and a consistent policy towards vaccinations.

“The IAM will pursue any grievance where our members were wrongfully denied an exemption and then terminated,” IAMAW District President Mike Klemm said in a September 3 statement. “Let me be abundantly clear. Your IAM attorneys have advised us that the company is within its legal rights to mandate the vaccine as a condition of employment so any grievance would be an uphill battle. Morally it’s deplorable, but welcome to Kirby Airlines.”

IAMAW International President Robert Martinez has also demanded that any vaccine mandates be part of the bargaining process. “The IAM will work to enforce the legal obligation of employers to bargain with unions over effects that implementation will have on union-represented employees,” said Martinez. “Rest assured, the IAM will, as always, continue to vigorously protect our members’ rights.”

All major airlines in the United States have announced plans to implement vaccine requirements, including American Airlines, Delta, Southwest, Hawaiian, Frontier, JetBlue, and United. In September, OSHA began drafting policies that will require all US-based employers with more than 100 workers to require vaccinations protecting against COVID-19 or allow weekly testing.