Agenda Item # 8
SUBJECT: Election Process – Duplicate Ballots (Section IX.F.3.c.)
STATEMENT OF QUESTION:
Should members be required to contact the International Office to obtain any duplicate ballots or other voting information such as PINS or Activation Codes?
SOURCE AND DATE SUBMITTED: International President – February 27, 2015
BACKGROUND INFORMATION:
Currently, Section IX.F.3.c. provides that provides the International Office mail duplicate ballots in the amount of 5% of the active members to the Local President. During 2012, an election of Local Officers was challenged by a losing candidate. A point of contention was that the International Secretary-Treasurer was in violation of the Constitution and Bylaws (C&B) when refused to provide duplicate ballots to the Local President, who was also a candidate. Instead, the Secretary-Treasurer made duplicate ballots available from the International Office for members requesting them.
The Department of Labor (DOL) conducted an investigation and found that Section IX.F.3.c. of the C&B is inconsistent with Section 401(c) of the LMRDA. The LMRDA requires the Union to have adequate protections in place to ensure a fair election, and that permitting an incumbent officer to have unsupervised control and access to duplicate ballots during an election would violate the adequate safeguards provisions of the LMRDA. The DOL concluded that the Union was not required to comply with this existing provision of the AFA-CWA Policy Manual, and that the actions of the Secretary-Treasurer did comply with the LMRDA.
This agenda item is intended to change Section IX.F.3.c. so that it complies with the LMRDA.
PROPOSED RESOLUTION:
WHEREAS, the Department of Labor (DOL) has concluded that the existing Section IX.F.3.c.does not comply with the of Labor-Management Reporting and Disclosure Act (LMRDA); and,
WHEREAS, we must maintain a provision to distribute duplicate ballots to anyone who needs a replacement ballot;
THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, Section IX.F.3.c. be amended as follows:
c. Replacement for lost or mismarked ballots in an amount sufficient to provide at least a number of equal to five percent (5%) of the active members of each domicile. For any voting procedure, a number of duplicate ballots equal to five percent (5%) of the active members of each domicile will be mailed to the Local Council President. These will be retained by the Ballot Certification Committee for distribution to members upon request.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, a new Section IX.F.2.g. be included as follows:
g. Duplicate ballot instructions.
Agenda Item # 7
SUBJECT: Direct Membership Election of Master Executive Council Officers
(Article VIII.B.1. & 2.)
STATEMENT OF QUESTION:
Should the AFA-CWA Constitution and Bylaws (Article VIII.B.) be amended to provide for Direct Membership Election of Master Executive Council Officers by the membership of each AFA-CWA airline?
SOURCE AND DATE SUBMITTED: CAL 62, 63, 64 – February 27, 2015
BACKGROUND INFORMATION:
The flight attendants at subsidiary Continental have, for many years, had the ability to elect their representatives at all levels of their union. This process has provided subsidiary Continental flight attendants with the ability to be directly involved and engaged in the selection of their leaders.
PROPOSED RESOLUTION:
WHEREAS, achieving a more inclusive and democratic union serves the interest of all members of AFA-CWA, and
WHEREAS, direct membership election of union officers not only provides for a more inclusive and democratic union, it encourages greater membership involvement and engagement in the union and in the selection of their leaders,
THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the AFA-CWA Constitution and Bylaws Article VIII, Section B, paragraphs 1 – 2 be amended and replaced with the following:
Nomination Procedures a. No later than one hundred and fifty (150) days before the start of the term of office, the International Secretary-Treasurer of the Union shall cause nominating ballots, commitment to serve statements and cover letters to be mailed to all active members of all Local Councils within that MEC. For all Local Councils located outside of the United States the time frame shall be two hundred and ten (210) days before the start of the term of office. For newly organized carriers, the nominating ballots, commitment to serve statements and cover letters shall be mailed to all active members of Local Councils no later than sixty (60) days following the appointment of Temporary Master Executive Council Officers.
b. Nomination procedures shall be conducted by secret ballot.
c. Each active member in good standing may nominate one (1) candidate for the office of President, Vice President and Secretary.
d. Nominating ballots, executed by active members in good standing, shall be sent to the International Secretary-Treasurer of the Union prior to the count date specified on said nominating ballot.
e. Nominating ballots of active members in good standing shall be certified and tallied under the supervision of the Ballot Certification Committee at the International Office.
f. 1. The Ballot Certification Committee shall determine a candidate’s commitment to serve as an elected Officer by any one (1) of the following:
a. Receipt of a commitment to serve card with the nomination ballot.
b. Written notification prior to the count date.
c. Checking the indicated block on the transmittal envelope.
(2) If a commitment to serve has not been indicated as outlined in C.1.f. (1) above, the AFA Membership Services Department will contact the nominee through email, phone calls(s), and regular mail letter requesting a commitment to serve statement, with the exception that no email, phone calls(s), and regular mail letter will be sent to a candidate with less than two (2) nomination votes. Verbal confirmation upon receipt of email, phone calls(s), and regular mail letter, confirmed in writing, may also serve as notification of a candidate’s commitment to serve.
(3) The International Secretary-Treasurer of the Union shall cause the names of all nominees who received at least two (2) nomination ballots and who have indicated their commitment to serve to be placed on the official Master Executive Council Officers election ballot.
2. Election Procedures
a. (1) No later than ninety (90) days before the start of the term of office, the International Secretary-Treasurer of the Union shall cause election ballots to be mailed to all active members of those Local Councils within the United States scheduled for Master Executive Council Officer elections as provided in Section 3. below. For all Local Councils located outside of the United States, ballots will be mailed one hundred and twenty (120) days before the start of the term of office. The election ballot shall list the names of the nominees for each Master Executive Council office in alphabetical order. Each active member in good standing may vote for one (1) candidate for each Master Executive Council office. Nothing in this Constitution and Bylaws shall prohibit the write-in and election of an eligible member for Master Executive Council office. Such election shall be conducted by secret ballot.
(2) Master Executive Council Officer election ballots executed by the active members in good standing of each Local Council shall be returned to the International Office no later than sixty (60) days before the start of a term of office, or before a date established by the International Secretary-Treasurer of the Union. Ballots shall be validated and tallied under the supervision of the Ballot Certification Committee. It shall certify the election results and notify the International Secretary-Treasurer of the Union, who shall promptly mail a copy of such certification to the successful candidates and to all the respective Local Council members. All nomination and election ballots and the transmittal envelopes in which they were received, shall be retained at the international Office for at least the duration of the terms of office for which the balloting was conducted.
(3) In cases where ties develop in the election process, the two (2) or more candidates who are tied shall participate in a runoff election by mail ballot that will be held as soon as practicable after the initial balloting is completed.
(4) In the event no eligible member is elected as Master Executive Council President, Vice President or Secretary, the International Secretary-Treasurer of the Union shall immediately arrange for additional balloting for such office.
b. The election of Master Executive Council Officers shall be completed and the successful candidates notified of their election by the International Secretary-Treasurer of the Union no later than the first day of the month preceding the term of office. These amendments shall take effect for all elections commencing voting on or after June 1, 2015.
Agenda Item # 6
SUBJECT: Dues – Prepayment of Annual Dues (Article XI.B.4.)
STATEMENT OF QUESTION:
Should the 10% discount for prepayment of annual dues be eliminated?
SOURCE AND DATE SUBMITTED: International President – February 27, 2015
BACKGROUND INFORMATION:
This discount was introduced at a time when interest rates were high and it made fiscal sense for the Union to collect dues on an annual basis. Currently, however, this 10% discount far exceeds the financial benefit to the Union and results in reduced resources available to provide representation to members.
There are approximately 650 members, primarily senior F/A’s with higher incomes, who enjoy this reduction of $60 per year. This represents a union-wide cost of about $39,000 that could otherwise be allotted to other key priorities of the Board of Directors.
PROPOSED RESOLUTION:
WHEREAS, significant savings can be achieved by eliminating the 10% discount for prepayment of annual dues;
THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, Article XI.B.4. be deleted and the following Article remembered accordingly:
4. Prepayment of Annual Dues
Any member may pay dues annually in advance prior to July 1 of any year. instead of quarterly and a ten percent (10% discount will be granted to such member on such annual prepaid amount.
Agenda Item # 5
SUBJECT: BOD Meeting and Advanced Leader Training (Article V.D.)
STATEMENT OF QUESTION:
Should the BOD Meeting and Advanced Leader Training both be conducted biennially so as to provide a cost-effective meeting schedule?
SOURCE AND DATE SUBMITTED: International President – February 27, 2015
BACKGROUND INFORMATION:
The annual cost of the BOD Meeting exceeds $350,000 and the Advanced Leader Training is at least $50,000 for a two-year total cost of approximately $800,000.
This cost over a two-year period can be reduced in half, so that $400,000 could be allotted to other key priorities of the Board of Directors.
A BOD Meeting held in even years aligns with the AFA International Officer elections. This schedule complements the CWA Convention that takes place in odd years.
When biennial Board Meetings were considered in the past, there were two considerations that caused the Board to hesitate: (1) the desire to meet with colleagues from other airlines on an annual basis; and, (2) the approval of an annual budget.
Given the BOD Meeting and CWA Convention would each meet biennially, this desire to meet with colleagues each year is satisfied.
Approval of the annual budget could be accomplished in a variety of ways. One way is to approve a biennial budget. Alternatively, a this could be done at a session of the BOD in conjunction with the CWA Convention. Currently, the AFA-CWA Sector meets for four hours prior to each Convention. This could be expanded to include approval of the Annual Budget.
Advanced Leader Training could be held in conjunction with either the BOD Meeting or the Convention so as to further reduce cost.
PROPOSED RESOLUTION:
WHEREAS, significant savings can be achieved by changing the frequency of the BOD Meeting and Advanced Leader Training from annually to biennially; and,
WHEREAS, approval of an annual budget may be accomplished at the AFA-CWA Sector Meeting conducted in conjunction with the CWA Convention; and,
WHEREAS, this change will not diminish the negotiations or enforcement of members collective bargaining agreements;
THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, Article V.D. be changed as follows:
- A regular meeting of the Board of Directors shall be held once every other year, in even numbered years. The date shall be between 01 February and 15 May. The regular annual biennial Board of Directors meeting shall be held at the location designated by the Board of Directors. Reasonable and adequate hotel accommodations, in the form of single rooms, will be provided, unless otherwise specified. If price, availability, location and amenities are comparable, preferred lodging is at a union hotel. Special consideration shall be given to those hotels that provide rooms with windows that open and food availability 24 hours a day located within the hotel, such as room service or lounge menu availability.
- Notice of annual biennial Board of Directors meetings shall be sent by USPS First Class Mail to each member of the Board of Directors at least thirty (30) days prior to the beginning date of said annual biennial meeting.
- Subject to Paragraph 4 below and Article VIII.A., the order of business at the annual biennial Board of Directors meetings normally shall be:
(Remainder of Article V.D. remains unchanged
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, during odd years when there is an AFA-CWA Sector Meeting held in conjunction with the CWA Convention, a budget-only session of the BOD may be conducted for the purpose of budget approval;
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, the International Secretary-Treasurer shall make other necessary changes to ensure consistency with the change from annual to biennial BOD Meetings; and,
BE IT FINALLY RESOLVED, the Board commits to conducting Advanced Leader Training in a cost-effective manner every other year.
Vote Results
View the final Roll Call Tally
(Office-2015) Date: 4/30/15 Time: 10:00 a.m.
2015 COMMITTEE RECOMMENDATION FORM
Agenda Item # 5
Committee # 4
Subject: BOD Meeting and Advanced Leader Training (Article V.D.)
The agenda item was not adopted as proposed.
Signature: Laura Masserant
Committee Chairperson
Action Taken by the Board: Voice Division of the House Roll Call X
_______Adopted Date: 4/30/15 Time: 10:28 am
_______Adopted as Amended
X Not Adopted
_______Tabled
_______Recommitted to Agenda Committee
_______Withdrawn
Agenda Item # 4
SUBJECT: BOD Meeting – Biennial (Article V.D.1.)
STATEMENT OF QUESTION:
Should the AFA-CWA C&B Article V.D.1 be amended to require the BOD meet on a biennial basis (every other year), instead of the current annual requirement?
SOURCE AND DATE SUBMITTED: CAL 62, 63, 64 – February 27, 2015
BACKGROUND INFORMATION:
The current annual requirement is financially onerous on the Union as a whole, and the local councils – especially the smaller regional carriers who do not have a large dues base from which to fund their participation. The estimated cost to our union for each BOD meeting is excessive. Further, the AFA-CWA budget has been in crisis for several years now. The requirement to hold a yearly BOD meeting is a very large burden on an already tight budget.
Our C&B , in Article V.D.5, allows for special BOD meetings to be called at any time by the Executive Board, the International President, or by demand of the membership. Should the need arise for our Union to address any unforeseen circumstances requiring action by the Board, we would be able to respond quickly, and at a much lower total cost.
By comparison: TWU holds its Constitutional Convention every 3-4 years, CWA (our parent) meets on a biennial basis, IAM meets every 4 years, and the Teamsters meet every 5 years.
PROPOSED RESOLUTION:
WHEREAS the current requirement to hold a BOD meeting yearly is financially onerous on the Union as a whole, and on Local Councils; and,
WHEREAS many Local Councils without a large dues base struggle financially to participate adequately at the BOD; and,
WHEREAS, the AFA-CWA budget has been in crisis for several years; and,
WHEREAS, the requirement to hold a yearly BOD meeting further burdens an already stressed budget; and,
WHEREAS, the C&Bs allow for a special BOD meeting to be called at any time by the Executive Board, International President, or member demand; and,
WHEREAS, the membership can be more adequately served by a financially stronger International and Local Councils,
THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, the C&Bs shall be amended to require biennial (every two years) BOD meetings instead of the current annual requirement.
Agenda Item # 3
SUBJECT: Assistants to the International President (Section I.D.)
STATEMENT OF QUESTION:
Should the section under General Administration, Assistant to the International President be changed?
SOURCE AND DATE SUBMITTED:
UAL 20, 21, 25, 26, 27, 42, CAL 62, 64 – February 26, 2015
BACKGROUND INFORMATION:
Up to five (5) positions may be established for full-time Assistants to the International President, appointed by the International President with the approval of the Executive Board.
PROPOSED RESOLUTION:
WHEREAS, up to five (5) positions may be established and appointed as full-time Assistants to the International President, it may not be a prudent use of Membership funds. Positions should be established to encourage fiscally responsible budgetary policy that serve the interests of all Members of AFA-CWA and ensure financial stability;
THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, that Section I.D should be amended as follows:
D. Assistants to the International President.
1. Up to five (5) three (3) positions may be established for full-time Assistants to the International President, appointed by the International President with the approval of the Executive Board using the following parameters:
a. One (1) full-time Assistant position will be established when the AFA-CWA total active Membership is between 10,000 and 25,000 Members as of March 1st each year.
b. Two (2) full-time Assistant positions will be established when the AFA-CWA total active Membership is between 25,001 and 40,000 Members as of March 1st each year.
c. Three (3) full-time Assistant positions will be established when the AFA-CWA total active Membership is greater than 40,001 Members as of March 1st each year.
d. The Assistants are to be responsible to and assist the International President in supervising the affairs of the Union, seeing to the discharge of Union functions and coordination of its activities, supervising managerial functions and duties of the Union and to further the objectives of the Board of Directors and the Executive Board.
2.) (remain the same)
3.) The salary of the position will be determined by the International President of the Union and the number of Assistants to the International President will be established based on the total active population of the Members as of March 1st of each year. The salary for the full-time Assistant position will not exceed the salary guidelines established for the International Secretary Treasurer in the AFA CWA Constitution and Bylaws.