By now, I would imagine all of you are aware of Executive Order 14042, which requires employees of federal contractors to be fully vaccinated against Covid-19. What we also know is the order also allows for each worker to request a deeply held religious exemption or ADA medical accommodation. What we do not know is how each employer will handle the religious exemption or medical accommodation for those members who are unable to receive the vaccination for these two reasons. Unfortunately, we cannot determine if there is a contractual or legal breach until each employer announces how they will handle both of these areas of accommodation. At this time, this is the only accurate and fact-based information that has been made public. Read more
This week I, along with International Administrative Vice President Mike Mayes, joined your TWU IFC Negotiating Team (NT), in New York, for their negotiating session with JetBlue Management. I went to deliver the message personally that the full strength and support of the TWU is behind achieving the first contract our IFCs deserve. Also, that we cannot continue negotiating at the same pace as we have since returning to the bargaining table. During this session we were successful in reaching Tentative Agreements on six articles and started to engage in serious discussions about the issues that our IFCs have prioritized to reach the contract, with work protections, that they deserve.
Meanwhile, I know that you have continued to experience threats, intimidation, and unfair discipline that seem to be coming directly from Vice President of Inflight Ed Baklor. Unfortunately, it appears that Ed continues to react with emotion and fails to recognize that the TWU has offered to work with JetBlue to find solutions to his self-induced staffing and scheduling problems. Other carriers are facing similar staffing issues, as the industry has rebounded faster than economists expected. Other carriers have put provisions in place because flights are so full, to get the Flight Attendants to the duty assignment. Airlines have also worked with their unions to offer financial incentives to cover the short staffing issues in the operation. Mr. Baklor has clearly decided it is easier to blame others and seems to have taken take the low road by putting our IFCs in harm’s way. In one clear example of intimidation, IFCs were replaced and charged with a Refusal for simply asking a question. The Supervisor would not even look the IFCs in the eye and stated, “I’m just the messenger.” I have news for Mr. Baklor—the TWU has a “message” even though we have yet to ratify our first contract with JetBlue, we are prepared to defend our IFCs, and we will not sit by quietly and tolerate your continued bullying. Read more
On Thursday, June 17, President Biden signed the Juneteenth National Independence Day Act into law, which establishes June 19 as the federal holiday, Juneteenth. Juneteenth (a portmanteau created by combining the words “June” and “nineteenth”), celebrates the day in 1865 that all black Americans finally received official notice from United States Army Major General Granger that “all slaves are free,” when the message was finally delivered to Galveston, Texas after President Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation, almost two and a half years earlier. Read more
Since the release of the Tentative Agreement, we have seen a lot of social media discussion, and unfortunately, much of that discussion is filled with misinformation. Our IFCs deserve to make decisions based on accurate information, so we want to explain these misunderstood terms and bust these rumors in simple terms.
True or False? JetBlue cannot make changes to IFC pay or working conditions while we are negotiating our first contract because we have “status quo” protections.
False. Read more