April 9, 2019 -- The AMFA – Southwest Airlines (SWA) Negotiating Committee has requested a system-wide referendum regarding a Tentative Agreement (TA). The complete text of the TA was emailed to each member’s company email address for your review and consideration on March 27, 2019. Votes for this referendum will be cast using ElectionBuddy election software.
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April 3, 2019 – After almost seven years of negotiations, the Aircraft Mechanics Fraternal Association (AMFA) and Southwest Airlines (SWA) announced a tentative agreement (TA) on a proposed contract for the airline’s Aircraft Maintenance Technicians. The TA includes significant pay increases, headcount protections, and job protection provisions.
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April 2, 2019 -- Following our announcement that we reached an Agreement in Principle on March 16, our Teams have been working to finalize the contractual language into an official Tentative Agreement (TA). We are happy to report that work is complete, and the TA is ready for your review.
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Download:
 20190402_Joint_Memo_re_TA_Finalized.pdf
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April 1, 2019 -- The National Executive Council (NEC) continues our efforts to achieve the best communication practices to reach our membership. Tools are in place for our members to acquire the latest news and updates regarding current events throughout the Association. In addition to our website and AMFA App push notification, we are using social media to increase visibility via Facebook and Twitter. The NEC also continues to conduct station and GMM visits throughout the system at both Alaska Airlines (AS) and Southwest Airlines (SWA) locations. Thank you for your continued support in this communication campaign.
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March 28, 2019 -- I would like to share a very interesting and exciting story with you, one that involves great professionalism and courage during “treacherous conditions.” You likely saw in the media the Viking Ocean Cruises’ ship – the Viking Sky – experiencing engine trouble off the coast of Norway starting on Saturday afternoon, March 23, 2019, and the subsequent evacuation.
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March 19, 2019 -- The Aircraft Mechanics Fraternal Association (AMFA) National Executive Council (NEC) fully supports the Transport Workers Union’s “American Airlines Should Care” Educational Campaign. AMFA appreciates and encourages efforts to educate the public on a user-friendly platform that exposes flaws in business practices that compromise safety.
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March 15, 2019 -- This most recent negotiation session held in Dallas, TX over the past three very long days, March 12-14, 2019, concluded at 3:15am this morning without a final resolution. While we are disappointed, both sides worked hard and significant progress was made during this session. We are encouraged that our efforts have put an agreement within reach, and we are continuing to work on a deal that the members can vote on. We also are in the process of scheduling our next session, should it be needed, and are hopeful we can reach a conclusion to this long negotiation process.
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March 11, 2019 -- Technician Integrated Seniority List (ISL) and Transition Agreement (TA) discussions continued last week. Representatives from Alaska and AMFA met on Wednesday afternoon to continue those discussions. We agree that we are not at an impasse and will continue to meet and work through the issues.
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March 8, 2019 -- Today your Association filed its formal Answer in federal court to the lawsuit brought on February 28, 2019, by Southwest Airlines Co., against AMFA and your designated collective bargaining representatives. The Answer filed by AMFA attorneys today strongly denies the allegations by the Company that any of the Named Defendants violated the Railway Labor Act, and our attorneys are prepared for and are planning a vigorous defense in court.
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March 8, 2019 -- Southwest Airlines recently filed a lawsuit in Dallas against the Aircraft Mechanics Fraternal Association (AMFA), the union that represents aircraft maintenance personnel at Southwest. Case 3:19-CV-00514-G filed 02/28/19. The action was filed in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Texas listing Southwest Airlines Co. as the Plaintiff versus AMFA Airlines Representatives, AMFA Legal Counsel; AMFA National Director, and the Aircraft Mechanics Fraternal Association as Defendants...
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March 8, 2019 -- Many of our stations are still experiencing cold temperatures, snow, and rain. Be aware of warning signs for possible hypothermia and frostbite. Dress in layers and be aware of damp/wet clothing. Utilize headwear as large amounts of heat can escape through the head. In addition to low temperature, wind and humidity are additional factors to consider when preparing to work in cold weather conditions.
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March 5, 2019 -- AMFA National is calling for nominations from AMFA Locals representing the Alaska Airlines (ASA) membership for the position of Alternate AMFA–ASA Aviation Safety Action Program (ASAP) Event Review Committee (ERC) Representative. AMFA National will accept nominations from each Local until 5:00PM ET, March 26, 2019.
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March 5, 2019 -- AMFA National is calling for nominations from AMFA Locals representing the Southwest Airlines (SWA) membership for the position of Alternate AMFA–SWA Aviation Safety Action Program (ASAP) Event Review Committee (ERC) Representative. AMFA National will accept nominations from each Local until 5:00PM ET, March 26, 2019.
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March 5, 2019 -- AMFA National is calling for nominations from AMFA Locals representing the Southwest Airlines (SWA) membership for the position of Alternate Outsourcing Liaison Representative. AMFA National will accept nominations from each Local until 5:00PM ET, March 26, 2019.
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March 3, 2019 -- On Thursday, February, 28, 2019, Southwest Airlines filed yet another federal lawsuit against AMFA, as well as your elected negotiating representatives individually. This is but one more step in a long-standing campaign aimed at your Union and at you and the very job that you do. his lawsuit comes on the heels of the Company’s self-styled “State of Operational Emergency” at several maintenance locations where it believes too many discrepancies were being generated and resulted in aircraft not being pushed back into service fast enough.
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February 22, 2019 -- I represent the Aircraft Mechanics Fraternal Association (“AMFA”). This letter is in response to your letter emailed at the end of the day, today, to: AMFA Airline Representatives, Dan Burgess, Craig Hamlet, Wayne Lampley, and Fred Bishop; and copied to my colleague, Lucas Middlebrook – and inexplicably publicly released before AMFA could respond. Click here to read more.
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Download:
20190222_AMFA_Legal_Ltr_to_SWA.pdf
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February 22, 2019 -- AMFA and the Southwest Airlines remain engaged in collective bargaining pursuant to the Railway Labor Act. The law requires that both parties refrain from “self help” until released by the National Mediation Board from mediation and a thirty-day cooling off period has expired. During collective bargaining the Company is prohibited from initiating a lockout or unilaterally changing the terms of our collective bargaining agreement – and conversely, AMFA-represented employees are prohibited from engaging in concerted “job actions” that interfere with Company operations. But by letter today, the Company alleges a job action. AMFA firmly rejects these allegations and has said so in a letter from our attorneys back to Mr. Shaw tonight...
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February 20, 2019 -- Our affiliation with the Aircraft Engineers International (AEI) has benefits that flow in both directions. As an affiliate, AMFA participates with AEI and learns about global aviation issues that pertain to licensed aircraft maintenance technician/engineers worldwide. Likewise, we share information from the United States regarding aviation issues that we face, from contract negotiations to maintenance practices. Most recently, we have shared AIR21 Whistleblower filings and subsequent safety issues that have been the subject of so much media attention at Southwest and American Airlines.
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February 19, 2019 -- Southwest Airline’s scapegoating of its expert Aircraft Maintenance Technicians does not bode well for the airline’s safe operations. Safety is, and always will be, our number one priority. For Southwest's leadership to connect the airline’s self-declared “operational emergency” to collective bargaining negotiations is simply an attempt to divert attention away from the airline’s safety issues. The FAA has condemned the carrier’s “capitulation of airworthiness” and Southwest has confessed that it has flown passengers in unairworthy aircraft. These glaring issues and the widespread pressuring of aircraft maintenance technicians by the airline were exposed in the recent CBS News report.
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February 15, 2019 -- By letter dated February 15, 2019, Southwest’s Sr. Director Tech Ops Production Lonnie Warren declared a State of Operational Emergency which imposes extra-contractual demands with respect to the services of our Aircraft Maintenance Technicians and Inspectors with the explicit threat of termination if they fail to comply. This declaration of a State of Operation Emergency occurs just eleven (11) days after a CBS News report detailing the efforts of Southwest maintenance to resist coercive pressure to ignore aircraft damage and the FAA’s confirmation of the degraded safety culture at Southwest. The CBS report exposed a problem so severe that two United States Senators have called for a congressional investigation.
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February 8, 2019 -- The degradation of Southwest’s aircraft maintenance safety culture has been recognized by the FAA, reputable media sources, and Landon Nitschke himself. Your personal involvement in restoring Southwest’s safety culture is long past due.
The CBS News investigative report, Accident Waiting to Happen, exposed to millions of Americans Southwest management’s resort to coercive practices to deter Aviation Maintenance Technicians (AMTs) from reporting aircraft damage.
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February 4, 2019 -- Two of the leading union representatives of aircraft maintenance technicians (AMTs) – Local 591, Transport Workers Union (TWU) and the Aircraft Mechanics Fraternal Association (AMFA) – issued a joint statement in response to the CBS Morning News report on the coercion of aircraft maintenance technicians. TWU Local 591 represents the aircraft line maintenance technicians of American Airlines and AMFA represents the aircraft maintenance technicians of Southwest Airlines and Alaska Airlines.
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OSHA's Whistleblower Protection Program enforces the whistleblower provisions of more than twenty whistleblower statutes protecting employees who report violations of various workplace safety and health, airline, commercial motor carrier, consumer product, environmental, financial reform, food safety, health insurance reform, motor vehicle safety, nuclear, pipeline, public transportation agency, railroad, maritime, and securities laws. Rights afforded by these whistleblower protection laws include, but are not limited to, worker participation in safety and health activities, reporting a work-related injury, illness or fatality, or reporting a violation of the statutes herein.
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Download:
SWA Supervisor.pdf
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Its_Your_Call_12-6-17.pdf
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FAA-SWA-LAX-Report.pdf
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FAA-SWA-Dallas.pdf
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FAA-LAS-Violation.pdf
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