TWU Local 556 Negotiating Committee Update #41

TWU LOCAL 556 NEGOTIATING COMMITTEE UPDATE #41
Your Only Official Source of Factual Information

Dear Member:

The Union met with the Company on January 21 to discuss Flight Attendant staffing, scheduling, and voluntary leave programs. The Union also wanted to set the tone at the table, expressing its hope for collaboration with the Company in the year ahead and beyond.

30-second summary:

• Per a request from the Union, the Company presented information regarding current staffing and scheduling of Flight Attendants, including numbers of active Flight Attendants and those that are on ExTO, open time and reserve utilization, and anticipated staffing needs for coming months.
• The Negotiating Team asked questions about voluntary programs, including whether Members could trade their own ExTO with that of another Flight Attendant. The Company stated it will not offer ExTO trading between Members.
• The Union stated its goal of collaborating with the Company at the table for the betterment of Southwest Airlines as a whole. TWU Local 556 President Lyn Montgomery stated that despite the damage that has been done to the Company Culture through the actions of Management, TWU Local 556 Members have shown that through unity, there is strength, and that the Union is committed to a spirit of collaboration. The Company was reminded that the Union’s role is to bring Members’ voices to the table, and that the Union will continue to communicate matters discussed at the table to keep Members informed on and engaged in this important negotiating process.
• The Union has sent the Company possible meeting dates through April 2021 to enable a regular cadence of communication and collaboration. 

Full Recap:

In a meeting with the Company on January 21, 2021, the Company answered the Union’s request for information related to current staffing and scheduling of Flight Attendants. 

Today, Southwest Airlines has a total of 15,994 Flight Attendants. Of those:

• 1,952 will return from ExTO in March;
• 948 are on 12-month ExTO and will return in September;
• 1,749 are on 18-month ExTO and will return in March 2022; and
• 510 are currently defined as “inactive,” (which includes those on medical leave, among other things, but not those on voluntary leave programs such as ExTO).

In January and February, Southwest Airlines will operate approximately 1,900 flights per day. Through a narrowly tailored non-disclosure agreement, your Negotiations Team was able to review the March flight schedule, as well, which the Company stated would be announced soon. Flight schedules for April and May are still being determined based on customer demand.

The Union and the Company engaged in a discussion about open time and reserve utilization, and how the volatility in open time coverage—including flight scheduled changes and behavioral changes, such as sick time utilization–has influenced staffing needs.

Members have inquired as to whether those with one length of ExTO (6, 12 or 18 months) have the opportunity to trade with another willing Member who has an ExTO of a different length. The Company stated it would not allow trades, due to the complexity of the trading process, the need to retain fairness for all Members, and the large workload it would impose upon crew planning, a team that is already stretched because of staffing challenges.

Staffing needs in March were also discussed, including details on average number of flights per day, aircraft utilization, workdays, and more. The Negotiations Team agreed to sign a narrowly tailored non-disclosure agreement to have the opportunity to review the data. Staffing requirements and the need for voluntary programs will vary depending on Customer demand and other operational metrics including sick days, COVID pulls and more.

The Union closed the meeting by expressing its desire for all parties to enjoy the benefits of true collaboration at the table in this new year and beyond, a charge to which the Company agreed. TWU Local 556 President Lyn Montgomery said that despite the damage to the culture inflicted by the Company, the Union is committed to rebuilding the Culture because Members have shown that, through unity, anything is possible. “It’s our goal to work collaboratively together, and also to make sure that we survive, exceed, and overpass the competition in the months and years ahead,” Montgomery said. “We are Flight Attendants and Southwest Airlines Cohearts first. We look forward to different times in 2021, and we’ll do our part.” The Union also restated its desire to keep Members informed and engaged in the negotiations process, both by bringing Members’ voices to the table and also keeping them apprised of discussions had there so that they may remain educated on the important negotiating process.

In this spirit of collaboration, the Union and the Company have agreed to regularly scheduled meetings. The Union has sent possible meeting dates to the Company through April 2021, and will keep Members apprised of meetings conducted and topics discussed at the table.

Full Recap:

Your Negotiating Team met the Company at the bargaining table December 10 to continue discussions on avoiding both concessions and furloughs in light of the Company’s previously-stated position that cost savings were needed. In advocating for you, the Members of TWU Local 556, your Union is committed to leaving no stone unturned in an effort to save jobs through voluntary solutions rather than through furloughs or contract concessions.

In previous meetings, the Company rejected Union proposals that would achieve cost savings and avoid both furloughs and concessions. However, the Company indicated an interest in opening up additional unpaid leave programs for bidding. In the last meeting, on December 3, your Union requested that the Company put any cost-savings proposals, including unpaid leave programs, in writing so that the options could be thoroughly evaluated. The Company failed to provide any additional proposal on December 10, and instead referred to a proposal it presented November 9, which did not meet its own stated objectives and requires concessions without protection from furloughs. Like many other work groups on property have also done, TWU Local 556 pointed out that the language around furloughs in the Company’s proposal is too broad and does not provide the furlough protection that Members would need.

Since, once again, the Company was not willing to present a new proposal to offer voluntary programs and specific parameters on how those would be implemented, your Union drafted and presented that language at the table. Your Union did so in the spirit of collaboration and to advocate for you, the Members, in an effort to save jobs and protect the contract. The proposal presented at the table would allow Members who could step up to take the Company’s voluntary programs the opportunity to do so. Reducing headcount in this way—as opposed to involuntary furloughs—would give the Company the cost reduction it is seeking while preserving respect for the vast contributions of Flight Attendants.

After reviewing the proposal, the Company advised the Negotiating Team that it would not be offering another round of voluntary paid leave programs, stating that it is not in a position to “pay people not to work.” Many Members have already made the tough financial decisions to take ExTO programs and reduced compensation in an effort to assist the Company, and the Union considers the Company’s attitude to be disrespectful to Members’ sacrifices and willing participation in the Company’s own cost-cutting programs.

The Company indicated that it would consider the possibility of offering additional unpaid leaves, and the Union invited the Company to submit a new proposal on that program offering. The Union also stressed how vital it was that specific financial goals be included in this new proposal for the Union to review.
The Union offered to meet with the Company as soon as Monday to address the Company’s stated need for decisions to be made under certain deadlines. The Company said it would not be ready by then. The Union then offered to accommodate the needs of the Company, and the parties agreed to meet December 15 to review the Company’s proposal.

Have questions about the Company’s prior proposals? Watch a replay of the December 4 Zoomcast in which your Negotiating Team and industry experts discuss why the Union has rejected the Company’s ideas.

Want to help? As TWU Local 556 continues to advocate on behalf of Southwest Airlines Flight Attendants, securing an extension of the CARES Act is incredibly important. It is strongly recommended that all Members reach out to your representatives to make our voices heard. If you have already reached out, please do so again, and ask your family and friends to do the same. Please click here to email your representative.

In Solidarity,

Your TWU Local 556 Negotiating Committee