I understand that not everybody has the time to be running for the local office. However, that’s not the only way to have an active involvement.

If you are a new hire, double-check with your local secretary that your check-off form is completed and submitted 60 days following the beginning of employment. You will be on Reserve, so start by reading that particular contract section. Find out who the Reserve committee members are at your base because they should be your first point of contact if you have any questions about the contractual language.

Lately, I’ve seen a lot of people questioning monthly seniority changes, and there’s a lot of noise about staffing issues. Well, all you have to do is ask your LEC for information. For example, they can answer how many Flight Attendants are on special assignments or leave. They can also provide information about reassignments, JA’s, premium pay, Premium Open Time, ARC, management flying, etc. 

Now, if you want to dive in and get on with the day-to-day issues at your base, there are committees that you can volunteer for. Maybe one of them will spark your interest or might be a topic about a subject you know a lot about.

Committees at your base

Here’s a brief rundown of the options that you have:

• The Air Safety, Health, and Security
  • The members of this group deal with the broad topic of safety. They collect, study, and sort all the safety reports about incidents on the airplane or airport grounds and during layovers. The information they collect is then given to the LEC so they can discuss it with management.
• Benefits
  • The members of this group help with  FMLA, maternity, and LOA issues. They must have extensive knowledge about the company rules and city/state regulations so they can assist other local members with their questions.
• Communications
  • The members of this group are the bridge between the local council and the rest of the base. They keep updated with information, be it a bulletin board, social media, or website updates.
• Employee Assistance/Professional Standards
  • To be part of this committee, you’ll have to undergo extra training since they deal with personal matters. However, they are available for the employee and their families and can help with a laundry list of issues. They also can help with communication differences between coworkers, including pilots.
• Government Affairs
  • The people in this group monitor and pursue legislative activities related to the AFA-CWA political agenda.
• Grievance
  • They protect ALL Flight Attendants against arbitrary and unjust disciplinary actions. Additionally, they are well versed in the contract subjects and language.
• Hotel
  • One of the most coveted groups around.Until the rest of us start complaining about the breakfast, the coffee maker, and the eternal battle between Whole Foods and Trader Joe’s. It isn’t always free stays and coffee. This group deals with problems like bed bugs and transportation.
• Human Rights
  • If organizing the community is your calling, this is your group. Members here have a passion for activism in social and economic justice. They are the ones that promote activities fostering understanding for one another.
• Inflight Service
  • The people in this committee deal with catering issues, service standards, sales, etc.
• Membership
  • Clerical work and records keeping are your thing. The duties of this group include answering the questions about our dues, including if we are in good standing and if we ever get a bill.
• Reserve
  • The person on this committee has a great deal of knowledge about the reserve part of the contract.
• Retirement
  • The person to contact with questions about our 401k plans and investments, even if you are years away from retirement. For those of you closer to the retirement days, they can help with contractual language and procedures.
• Scheduling
  • The people here assist crew planning with our pairings and schedules. They also keep records of bid awards, staffing, and reserve ratios at the base. There are two sub-committees to this one:
    • Pairing construction- if logistics are your thing
    • PBS- if you know all that’s needed to be known about the Preferential Bidding System (or at least can find the instructions for the rest of us)
• Uniforms
  • They handle all the write-ups about our uniform and provide feedback, from style to fabrics.

In conclusion

As you can see, there are plenty of choices for you to get involved at your base. An excellent place to start is to visit the union website and look at the different groups and the people in them. You can always contact your LEC with base-specific topics if you are unsure whom to talk to.

The undoubtedly most single thing you can do to get involved is to take the time to read the contract. It is boring, but you don’t have to do it all at once. You have it available on your work device and the union website. You can even download it to your computer! A section a day can keep the frustrations away. If you have questions, your local union officials should be your primary point of contact.

Next week I’ll talk about the hottest committee in town: The Negotiations Committee. I will explain what they do, who they are, and how you can get involved.