This is APA Communications Committee member First Officer Scott Shankland with the APA Information Hotline for Friday, February 27.
NATIONAL ANNOUNCEMENT DAY: National Announcement Day is set for next week on Tuesday, March 3. This national domicile meeting is every member’s opportunity to hear firsthand our future negotiating prospects, the forecast Railway Labor Act bargaining path ahead and our plan for the execution of self-help.
Management’s conduct at the negotiating table continues to be unresponsive at best, regressive at worst and disingenuous in its entirety. While we hope for a negotiating breakthrough, it now appears management will force us to utilize the final stages of the RLA process to reach a contract resolution.
National Announcement Day is part of a much larger, coordinated campaign to complete APA’s efforts to prepare for the legal employment of self-help following a National Mediation Board release. The most important part of our final preparations is membership education of each person’s role, participation and responsibilities during self-help. This is information all members must have and understand—so plan to attend!
Your domicile officers will be conducting the meetings supported by APA national representatives. Please go to the members’ home page of the alliedpilots.org Web site to sign-up and find your domicile time and location.
MEMBERSHIP PREFERENCE SURVEY: The new membership preference survey is only active for another 10 days. The survey is accessible by clicking on the survey button on the members’ home page of alliedpilots.org. The online survey will be active until March 7 and should take 20-30 minutes to complete. Partially completed surveys may be saved and restarted.
Right now, captain participants are outnumbering first officer participants. By domicile, the participation rankings are: LGA, DCA, SFO, MIA, LAX, DFW, BOS, ORD and STL.
If you haven’t already taken the survey, what are you waiting for? This is a great opportunity for every member to participate in achieving the most important contract of our careers. Go take the survey!
UPCOMING SPC TRACKING EXERCISE: Following National Announcement Day, APA SPC will conduct a Web-based-only tracking exercise. All pilots in all domiciles flying from March 4 to March 9 are asked to participate. Participation in this exercise will require a daily level of communication with the union by filling out the tracking form on alliedpilots.org before your first flight of each day during this period. The tracking form can be accessed from the members’ home page of alliedpilots.org.
Tracking exercises are simulations that allow APA to develop and test the command, control and communications structure required to conduct alternative self-help operations anywhere in the system. You can assist in preparations for this exercise by helping us get the word out to ensure 100 percent participation. The SPC tracking banner on the members’ home page will be available starting March 4.
NEGOTIATIONS TO RESUME NEXT WEEK: Negotiations between APA and AMR management are set to resume next week in Annapolis, Maryland. Bargaining sessions have been on a six-week break. During this time two negotiating subcommittees, one for economic analysis and another for scheduling issues, worked on analyzing various proposals. The subcommittees were formed at the recommendation of the National Mediation Board. Formal bargaining sessions are scheduled for next Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday.
That’s all we have for today. Thanks for checking this Hotline message and remember—your participation is essential to your success in getting the contract you deserve!
MARCH 3 NATIONAL ANNOUNCEMENT DAY MEETINGS
BOS—Doors open at 8:30 a.m. with coffee and Danish, meeting from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m., Red Hook Brewery (large upstairs meeting room), 35 Corporate Drive, Pease International Trade Port, Portsmouth, NH 03801. Lunch will be served.
DCA—Coffee and bagels at 9:30 a.m., meeting begins at 10 a.m., Holiday Inn Old Town Alexandria, 625 First St., Alexandria, VA 22314.
DFW—Meeting from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., DFW Hyatt Regency, 2334 North International Parkway, DFW Airport. Lunch will be served and parking will be validated. Union identification card required for entry. The DFW Hyatt Regency is located within walking distance from DFW Terminal C. A shuttle also runs from the terminals to the Hyatt.
LAX—Meeting begins at 9 a.m., Atrium Court Hotel, 18700 MacArthur Blvd., Irvine, Calif., across from SNA.
LGA—Doors open at 9:30 a.m. for coffee and bagels, meeting from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., lunch will be served, free parking, Holiday Inn EWR, 160 Frontage Rd., Newark, 973-589-1000.
MIA—Meeting from 10:30 A.M. to 2:30 P.M., Dave & Buster’s Hollywood, I-95 between Stirling and Sheridan, lunch will be served, tel. 954-923-5505.
ORD—Coffee at 9:30 a.m., meeting begins at 10 a.m., Maggiano’s Little Italy, 1901 E. Woodfield Road, Schaumburg, IL 60173. Lunch will be served.
SFO— Doors open at 9 a.m., meeting begins at 9:30 a.m., Crowne Plaza Mid Peninsula, 1221 Chess Drive, Foster City, Calif., tel. 650-570-5700.
STL—Meeting from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., lunch will be served, Holiday Inn Oakland Park, 4505 Woodson Rd., St. Louis.
