United Airlines Safety Bulletin

United Airlines Safety Bulletin

GSAP Event Review Committee (ERC) team members

Rachel Shultz – Management AO
Ashley Maddox – Management AO
William Salo – IAM District 141
Brian Leifker – IAM District 141
John Woodring – FAA
David Lilja – Program Mgr/Sr. Analyst

 ERC upcoming events 

 The ERC meets Wednesdays from 11 a.m. – 4 p.m. 

Ground Safety Action Program News is cooperatively published by United Airlines, IAM, and the FAA. The Ground Safety Action Program (GSAP) is a joint partnership designed to improve the safety of United’s operations by offering the IAM, management, and administrative employees the ability to report safety concerns and/or self-disclose inadvertent Code of Federal Regulation (CFR) and company policy violations.

File a GSAP at ASAP.UAL.COM OR call the GSAP Hotline at 844-280-ASAP

Scan me to download the My Safety App to your smartphone

My Safety App (MSA): Available now!

We’re excited to introduce the My Safety app (MSA) – a mobile solution for Safety reporting available to AO frontline employees and M&A employees across the company.

MSA is available across all mobile platforms, including MAP devices, TC75 handheld scanners, and all personal mobile devices.

The app provides a user-friendly experience for the submission of GSAP and AO IOR reports directly from your work or personal mobile device. Airport Operations Safety listened to your feedback about the limitations and frustrations associated with the completion of safety reports on desktop computers. We addressed this feedback by partnering with the Digital Technology team to bring mobile safety reporting to the Airport Ops team.

The app was designed from the ground up, using feedback from CS, Ramp, MoveTeam, and IAM union leaders. The same groups were involved in testing the mobile app to ensure proper functionality. Some of the exciting features of the app include voice dictation and photo and video attachments. ETQ (the web-based tool you’ve traditionally accessed through Flying Together) or asap.ual.com will remain fully functional to users and will continue to serve as the database for safety reports.

Employees may file new reports or access old reports on the desktop platform or via the new mobile app.

As a reminder, the use of hand-held electronic devices while operating any motorized vehicle is strictly prohibited.

Ground Safety Action Program News is cooperatively published by United Airlines, IAM, and the FAA. The Ground Safety Action Program (GSAP) is a joint partnership designed to improve the safety of United’s operations by offering the IAM, management, and administrative employees the ability to report safety concerns and/or self-disclose inadvertent Code of Federal Regulation (CFR) and company policy violations.

Your feedback is welcome:

adam.carter@united.com

NLC@united.com

 

File a GSAP at ASAP.UAL.COM OR call the GSAP Hotline at 844-280-ASAP

Scan me to download the My Safety App to your smartphone

14 CFR Part 5 Requirement

Thank you for doing your part in creating a safer environment and helping United comply with 14 CFR Part 5, which requires employees of every Part 121 carrier to communicate hazards and/ safety concerns they identify at work. Your reporting has led to many improvements to policies and procedures, and much-needed technology updates. Keep up the good work!

Current NLC items under review by the Safety Review Committee

1. Flights Departing without Final Weights

Current phase: Investigation

Updated 2/25/22

Flights Departing without Final Weights have been reported and are being processed through the Flight Operations Safety Action Program (FSAP) along with a review by United’s FAA Principal Operations Inspectors (POI) for resolution.

2. PRC Weight Change Errors

Current phase: HI Draft Updated 3/1/22

As a result of multiple GSAP reports related to ATW Weight Changes, AO Safety is currently drafting a passenger weight error discrepancy Hazard ID. The goal of the Hazard Identification is to take a closer look at the errors and determine appropriate mitigations such as adding controls or technology that may help alleviate passenger weight change errors.

3. Difficulty Contacting Stations

Current phase: Project Planning Updated 3/1/22

Both GSAP and DSAP reports have identified occasions where contact information for stations is inaccurate or unavailable. As a result, a project team of subject matter experts is currently looking at a replacement for, or a rebuild of the AGH and Airport Database that is more accurate. The team will also create a process to correct station information in a timely manner. In the meantime, a quarterly audit of the AGH is being conducted to ensure the phone data is updated appropriately.

IAM Negotiators, United Meet at IAM141 District Headquarters

IAM Negotiators, United Meet at IAM141 District Headquarters

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18 February 2022

IAM Negotiators, United Meet at IAM141 District Headquarters

The IAM District 141 negotiating committee and representatives from United Airlines met this week in Chicago, IL, and engaged in another round of meaningful talks under the expedited negotiation process. The Union and the Company discussed specific quality of life issues identified by IAM members in the contract survey and proposal process and explained our concerns surrounding each issue.

The Union once again emphasized to the Company the need to compensate IAM-represented United Airlines members at the top of the industry, provide employment security provisions that provide all IAM members and their families the job protections they need and deserve, and fix the issues that degrade IAM United members quality of life on and off the job.

The negotiating committee also spent time honing contract language that will be proposed to the company.

We are cautiously optimistic that the expedited contract process is on track. Our hope is that the Company recognizes the importance and value of IAM members at United Airlines and how bargaining a fair and just contract is not only the right thing to do but also vital to United Airlines’ future success.

Due to some scheduling conflicts our next negotiating session with the Company will be the week of March 21st. However, your negotiating team will be getting together in the meantime to work on fine-tuning your proposals in preparation for the upcoming meetings.

In Solidarity,

Michael G. Klemm

President & Directing General Chair,
IAMAW District 141

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

IAM Negotiators, United Meet at IAM141 District Headquarters

IAM District 141, United Airlines Confirm Dates to Begin the Expedited Collective Bargaining Process.

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IAM District 141, United Airlines Confirm Dates to Begin the Expedited Collective Bargaining Process.

 

In December, we reported that, based on input from the membership, we could reach an agreement with United through expedited negotiations, as was done in 2016.

We expect to reach an agreement that delivers the improvements demanded in the surveys and the contractual gains you deserve.

IAM members at United stepped up to help our airline navigate through some of the toughest years in airline industry history. Throughout these negotiations, you can rest assured that we will reiterate this fact to United Airlines management.

We will meet with the Company starting the week of February 14. We will then follow up with meeting dates for the weeks of February 28, March 14, March 28, and April 11. We will provide weekly updates following these meetings.

Thank you for your incredible support as we negotiate a contract worthy of your hard work and dedication.

In Solidarity,

Your District 141 Negotiating Committee

Olu Ajetomobi
Joe Bartz
Victor Hernandez
Barb Martin
Andrea’ Myers
Terry Stansbury

Faysal Silwany
Erik Stenberg
Sue Weisner

Michael G. Klemm

President & Directing General Chair,
IAMAW District 141

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

Machinists Union Members at United Begin Contract Talks

Machinists Union Members at United Begin Contract Talks

Machinists Union Members at United Begin Contract Talks

The International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers began contract negotiations with United Airlines on Tuesday at the unions’ district headquarters in Chicago. The union is negotiating seven separate contracts at the airline, which will cover approximately 23,000 workers.

Both parties are working to return to the process of expedited negotiations, which had originally been scheduled to begin sometime in early 2020, but were postponed due to the pandemic. “The possibility that we could come to an agreement sooner rather than later is definitely on the table,” said Machinists Union District President Mike Klemm, who is involved in the talks. 

While the prospect of producing an agreement in the near term is appealing, Klemm cautioned that the union and company were still in the very early stages of drafting a new agreement, and that no solid deal had been worked out yet.

Under the Railway Labor Act, the set of laws that governs labor unions in the transportation sector, workers and employers can engage in an expedited collective bargaining process that would not renegotiate every aspect of an existing contract, but would instead update only the provisions that the union members target. 

The expedited process will give IAM members at United the opportunity to improve wages, benefits, and working conditions in the very near future,” Klemm told union members in the lead-up to the negotiations. “We used a similar model back in 2016 with great success, and both IAM District 141 and United agreed to discuss trying it again. Our hope is we can replicate that success, which brought us industry-leading contracts at the time.”

The IAM and United agreed in November 2015 to open existing collective bargaining agreements early and enter “limited issue, expedited negotiations” to take advantage of favorable industry conditions. The process concluded after four months of intense bargaining and led to industry-best contracts for IAM-represented workers at United Airlines.

At the time, the pact between United and the Machinists Union created some of the highest wages for fleet and customer service agents, instructors, and other unionized workgroups in the history of American commercial aviation. That deal produced wage increases of just over 18%, and overall compensation levels that delivered more than $3 billion for US-based airline workers. 

In 2019, an alliance between the Machinists Union and the Transport Workers Union at American Airlines produced another historic agreement. Once again, union members saw historic wage increases, this time accompanied by some of the most ironclad job protections the industry had ever seen. That agreement was ratified by an incredible 95% of fleet service workers – an almost impossible feat for a group the size of the unionized workers at American. In all, more than 30,000 workers at American Airlines are members of either the Machinists or Transport Workers Union. 

The personnel that drafted those historic agreements are returning once again to the bargaining table to hammer out the contract at United. Among them, Tom Regan, a veteran negotiator working on the United contract, has become legendary for his ability to close a deal. Regan, along with Assistant Airline Coordinator at the Machinists Union’s Transportation Territory, James Carlson, will be joining the negotiating team. 

“The main thing I want our members to know is that, yes, we want to bring a deal home as soon as possible,” Klemm said of the negotiations. “But, speed cannot come at the risk of losing things like job security. It won’t matter if our members are making $35 an hour if they don’t have strong job security protections,” he said. “The job protections we won in the 2016 United agreement and at American are the best our industry has ever seen,” he said. “And these protections are non-negotiable unless they improve.”

Thousands of United workers across different classifications from all over the nation participated in a pre-negotiations survey which shaped the topics of discussion for improvement in the upcoming contract.

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IAM Negotiators, United Meet at IAM141 District Headquarters

IAM District 141, United Airlines Agree to Expedited Contract Talks

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IAM District 141, United Airlines Agree to Expedited Contract Talks

 

Good morning Sisters and Brothers,                                                                               

IAM District 141 and United Airlines met this week in Chicago, IL, and agreed to enter into an expedited collective bargaining process that, if successful, would lead to seven new contracts covering approximately 23,000 IAM-represented workers at the carrier. 

The expedited process, which was utilized in 2016 and led to industry-leading contracts for IAM-represented workers at United at the time, is structured to narrow the scope of issues to be negotiated, based on membership priorities. The goal is to reach industry-best contracts in a condensed period of time. In 2016, the expedited negotiations process took only five months, compared to the industry average of about 15 months. Traditional negotiations between the IAM and United have historically exceeded the 15-month industry average. 

“District 141 is pleased to report that all priorities identified in the recent survey by IAM-represented workers at United are on the list to be negotiated with the Company,” said IAM District 141 President and Directing General Chairman Mike Klemm. “We are excited to get this process going and bring back the improvements that IAM members at United Airlines fully deserve. IAM members at United continue to answer the bell, day in and day out, to ensure that United Airlines remains atop the airline during the most difficult and uncertain times the US aviation industry has ever known. Simply put, IAM-represented workers at United Airlines deserve to be compensated as the industry’s best.”

Both IAM District 141 and United Airlines reserve the right to terminate the expedited contract negotiations process and enter traditional collective bargaining under what is known as Section Six of the Railway Labor Act, the federal law that governs contract negotiations in the airline and railroad sectors.

The two sides are in the process of scheduling future negotiations dates and the membership will be advised of those dates when they are finalized.

In Solidarity,

Your District 141 Negotiating Committee

Olu Ajetomobi
Joe Bartz
Victor Hernandez
Barb Martin
Andrea’ Myers 
Terry Stansbury

Faysal Silwany
Erik Stenberg

Michael G. Klemm

President & Directing General Chair,
IAMAW District 141

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

Front Line Input “Crucial to the Success” of Contract Negotiations, says IAMAW District President, Mike Klemm

Front Line Input “Crucial to the Success” of Contract Negotiations, says IAMAW District President, Mike Klemm

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Front Line Input “Crucial to the Success” of Contract Negotiations, says IAMAW District President, Mike Klemm

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Input and solidarity from front-line union members are “crucial to the success” of contract negotiations at United and Hawaiian Airlines, according to IAMAW District 141 President Mike Klemm. Klemm is helping to oversee ongoing negotiations at Hawaiian and will lead the efforts to negotiate seven separate contracts at United. 

Input and solidarity from front-line union members are “crucial to the success” of contract negotiations at United and Hawaiian Airlines, according to IAMAW District 141 President Mike Klemm. Klemm is helping to oversee ongoing negotiations at Hawaiian and will lead the efforts to negotiate seven separate contracts at United. 

Klemm made the statements in a wide-ranging interview that aired Wednesday on the My Labor Radio Podcast with host Mark Gevaart.

Stressing the importance of member participation in contract negotiations, Klemm asked union workers to keep sending in their thoughts. “It’s actually crucial to the success of the negotiations process,” he said. “A lot of people are under the false premise that Mike Klemm or ‘The Union’ negotiates whatever they want… but that’s not the case.” 

“What we do is, we canvass our members, broken down by contract,” he explained, adding that union negotiators will get a clearer picture of the most critical priorities in the workplace if front-line participation is high. While pointing out a few obvious goals, such as better pay and key benefit improvements, which will always be part of contract negotiations, Klemm said he is particularly interested in more personal items, such as work rules.  

“It’s the work rules I really want to hear about,” he told show host Mark Gevaart.  

Thousands of IAMAW members at United Airlines recently participated in a three-week survey period where they were asked to submit contract proposals and describe their workplace priorities. The results have been tabulated and used to create a set of opening proposals during upcoming contract talks at the airline. At a recent Union Conference, Klemm said that expedited negotiations could be possible, but this would depend on how many aspects of the current agreements will need to be amended. The expedited negotiation process could produce an updated contract much sooner than a complete contractual overhaul.

Klemm urged members to keep sending their thoughts, even after the survey and canvassing process has completed. “I love it when people write in and explain why they want this or that change to the contract,” he said. “That’s a true service to other members, and provides much needed context and background.” Union Members can send in messages at IAM141.org/Contact. Each email will be seen by Klemm personally.  

Union Negotiators come from all over the nation, Klemm said, to produce a representative sample of the entire membership. “Obviously, you can’t have a 50-person Negotiating Committee,” he said. “But we’ve enlisted leaders from San Francisco, Los Angeles, Chicago, Houston, Newark… and so we have people from all over.”  

Along with the United talks, Klemm is also completing an updated agreement at Hawaiian Airlines. Those talks are happening with help from District 142, which like District 141, also represents workers at the airline.

While making significant progress at Hawaiian, a few outstanding issues remain, items that Klemm is optimistic can be reconciled at a joint meeting scheduled to take place on December 10.  

Under the Railway Labor Act, which governs airline unions, contracts with workers never expire. Instead, they become “amendable” after a specific date. 

The award-winning, Indiana-basedMy Labor Radio’ Podcastis the only broadcast promoting labor voices in the state. It is also part of the Labor Radio Network, which can be found at www.LaborRadioNetwork.org. The full interview with Mike Klemm originally aired on www.WELTFM.org, and will be rebroadcast on Wednesday, December 8th, from 1:00 – 2:00 pm EST.  

A link to the full interview can be found here.

 

 

Klemm made the statements in a wide-ranging interview that aired Wednesday on the My Labor Radio Podcast with host Mark Gevaart.

Stressing the importance of member participation in contract negotiations, Klemm asked union workers to keep sending in their thoughts. “It’s actually crucial to the success of the negotiations process,” he said. “A lot of people are under the false premise that Mike Klemm or ‘The Union’ negotiates whatever they want… but that’s not the case.” 

“What we do is, we canvass our members, broken down by contract,” he explained, adding that union negotiators will get a clearer picture of the most critical priorities in the workplace if front-line participation is high. While pointing out a few obvious goals, such as better pay and key benefit improvements, which will always be part of contract negotiations, Klemm said he is particularly interested in more personal items, such as work rules.  

“It’s the work rules I really want to hear about,” he told show host Mark Gevaart.  

Thousands of IAMAW members at United Airlines recently participated in a three-week survey period where they were asked to submit contract proposals and describe their workplace priorities. The results have been tabulated and used to create a set of opening proposals during upcoming contract talks at the airline. At a recent Union Conference, Klemm said that expedited negotiations could be possible, but this would depend on how many aspects of the current agreements will need to be amended. The expedited negotiation process could produce an updated contract much sooner than a complete contractual overhaul.

Klemm urged members to keep sending their thoughts, even after the survey and canvassing process has completed. “I love it when people write in and explain why they want this or that change to the contract,” he said. “That’s a true service to other members, and provides much needed context and background.” Union Members can send in messages at IAM141.org/Contact. Each email will be seen by Klemm personally.  

Union Negotiators come from all over the nation, Klemm said, to produce a representative sample of the entire membership. “Obviously, you can’t have a 50-person Negotiating Committee,” he said. “But we’ve enlisted leaders from San Francisco, Los Angeles, Chicago, Houston, Newark… and so we have people from all over.”  

Along with the United talks, Klemm is also completing an updated agreement at Hawaiian Airlines. Those talks are happening with help from District 142, which like District 141, also represents workers at the airline.

While making significant progress at Hawaiian, a few outstanding issues remain, items that Klemm is optimistic can be reconciled at a joint meeting scheduled to take place on December 10.  

Under the Railway Labor Act, which governs airline unions, contracts with workers never expire. Instead, they become “amendable” after a specific date. 

The award-winning, Indiana-basedMy Labor Radio’ Podcastis the only broadcast promoting labor voices in the state. It is also part of the Labor Radio Network, which can be found at www.LaborRadioNetwork.org. The full interview with Mike Klemm originally aired on www.WELTFM.org, and will be rebroadcast on Wednesday, December 8th, from 1:00 – 2:00 pm EST.  

A link to the full interview can be found here.

 

 

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