The Update
Message from the International Association of Machinists
representing Continental, ExpressJet and
Continental Micronesia
Flight Attendants in the 2339 Local Lodges
Friday, February 3, 2006
After more than a year of negotiations
and twelve consecutive days of voting, the vast majority
of Continental Airlines Flight Attendants have ratified
the agreement your negotiators reached with the airline
last month. Sixty seven percent of those voting voted in
favor of the tentative agreement. In spite of pressure to
conform to trends set by others, the Machinists Union has
produced the leading Flight Attendant agreement by far.
Congratulations on being the highest compensated Flight
Attendants in the industry with the most secure defined
benefit pension options anywhere. The terms of the
four-year agreement include preservation of wage rates and
progressions for current Flight Attendants; top base pay
rate increased to $50 per hour prior to amendable date;
furlough protection; enhanced crew rest; improved commuter
and reserve issues and participation in profit sharing and
stock option plans. Critically important is the security
of knowing Flight Attendants do not have to depend on
Continental's pension plan for retirement security. The
agreement is a product of two years work, beginning with
on-line and crew room surveys long before actual
negotiations began. The membership's input throughout this
process was invaluable in developing the satisfactory
solutions to address Flight Attendants' demands. IAM
District 142 and your entire negotiating committee thank
the membership for the solidarity, support and
professionalism displayed throughout these lengthy
negotiations.
According to management executives
at ExpressJet and Continental, Continental intends to
solicit bids from other Regional carriers who are able to
operate current and future ExpressJet flights at cheaper
rates than those offered by ExpressJet. We'll keep you
advised of further developments regarding Continental's
search for a regional carrier to replace ExpressJet as
more information becomes available.
Comair, the Delta owned regional carrier
that operates Delta flights to
and from Delta's hub stations is operating under
bankruptcy protection. Comair is in the process of cutting
costs by furloughing flight attendants and other workers
and working towards bankruptcy court approval to
“abrogate” or legally abolish its current contract with
flight attendants and other employees.
At Continental, FAA inspectors
have been boarding flights recently and checking flight
attendants for manual compliance. Several flight
attendants have not been in compliance and investigations
have been initiated by inflight management. Please make
sure that your manuals are fully compliant before boarding
aircraft for flight assignments. A check list is
available from you inflight supervisor.
Northwest Airlines
wants to replace 30% of its flight attendants on
international flights with non-U.S. attendants, a move it
says will lower costs. The union representing the U.S.
flight attendants opposes the plan. Northwest, which
operates under bankruptcy protection, says it needs to
hire non-U.S. flight attendants because of their language
skills. It should be noted that our contract has
industry leading merger protection and scope (who performs
our work) language. In fact, the seniority protection in
our merger language caused Delta to drop their pursuit of
Continental in 2000 because of the seniority provisions
are contract contained. Additionally, our scope language
prevented VASP Airlines from taking working positions on
our flights to Sao Paolo during our code share agreement
in 1998.
United Airlines
emerged from Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection Wednesday
after three years. The airline has reduced its labor
force, cut wages and terminated its pension plan. The
company said at one point the company was close to
liquidation; whether or not the company posts an operating
profit depends on oil prices they further said.
JetBlue Airways was hurt
in the fourth quarter higher fuel costs,
weak revenue and poor weather, the company said. The
airline reported a loss of $42.4 million, down from a
profit of $1.5 million a year earlier. JetBlue expects to
post a loss for all of 2006.
We would like to encourage all members
to attend your Local Lodge business meeting.
Each base must have a quorum to conduct business. The
following is a schedule for upcoming meetings:
:
Tuesday, February 14, 3:00 p.m. at the DoubleTree (Wyndam)
Hotel.
Cleveland:
Thursday, February 9, 4:00 pm at 669 North Rocky River
Drive;
Guam:
Wednesday, February 15, 4:00 p.m. at the Airport
Conference Room;
Houston: Wednesday, February 22, 1:00 p.m. at 15710
JFK Blvd.
