[06.18.10] -- Our Flight Attendant Contract is akin to the owner's manual for your vehicle. Would you keep the owner's manual at home, in the closet, or in a desk drawer? Or, would you attempt to concoct a recipe you've never cooked up without a recipe book in hand as reference? The answer to both of these questions is: probably not.

The FAOM and The Contract — The Rules and The Protections

Our FAOM (Flight Attendant Operations Manual) is a requirement for us to have with us on each trip (FAA Regulation and Company Policy). The FAOM ensures we adhere to Federal Law and the mandates of our FAA certification. The FAOM looks out for the safety of commercial aviation, the airline and the traveling public. Flight Attendants are unable to legally fly without the FAOM, and we report to work with it consistently.

Our CONTRACT (aka the Collective Bargaining Agreement), on the other hand, is not a requirement to carry with us, but it differs from the FAOM because it protects US. Our Contract stipulates the manner in which we can be scheduled, defines how we get paid, and limits the process in which we are rescheduled. The Contract also provides us with hotel safety & security oversight, and dictates how management administers our benefits (medical, dental, maternity, sick leave, etc).

The Contract determines our entire work life — in about 5" X 6"

Each day, Flight Attendants come across many legalities that no one is expected to remember off the top of their head. Our Contract is minimal in size — it measures about 5 inches by 6 inches — yet it single-handedly determines our entire work lives at United Airlines. Our Contract is a living document (just like a will or a trust), and is filled with protections that were fought for by Flight Attendants throughout the decades.

Some report to work without our "owner's manual" in our tote or suitcase, and are left to blindly go by what crew scheduling provides — we are literally "in the dark." There are many situations where Flight Attendants cite Contract reference to dispel the assertions that "they're legal" for a reassignment in the operation. Yet others are sometimes fooled into waiving legalities, or duped into forgoing rights afforded to them by our Contract by virtue of being oblivious or unaware.

Having your Contract with you at all times isn't a luxury; it's a right afforded to you by our union membership. Without it, management and crew scheduling would have "carte blanche" over every aspect of our work life — a scenario we fortunately never have to contemplate. The rights and protections of our Contract are sometimes taken for granted, so to be certain we never become complacent, we should always have our personal copy in our possession at all times when we're on duty. Section 4.C. of our Contract requires the company to provide each Flight Attendant with a copy of our Contract. Copies can be obtained at the Domicile Coordinator's Desk.

See Also — Our Contract: The Collective Bargaining Agreement >>

Section 4.C. of our Contract states: "The COMPANY shall provide in an established manner each F/A with a copy of this Agreement.." Copies of our Contract can be obtained at the Domicile Coordinator's Desk.

Contracts Finally Arrive in the Domicile - E-Lines 09/18/07 Update: We can file away the addendum to the 2003-2009 Contract. We have received confirmation that printed 2005-2010 F/A Agreements are being shipped to the domiciles for company distribution to all AFA Members. Once these deep purple-cover Contracts arrive, be sure to pick up your copy from the coordinator and carry it with you at all times. The web version of our Contract is also posted on unitedafa.org. This doesn't substitute the hard copy, but it does provide an added tool for you to search, review and understand the rights we've fought to gain and worked hard to protect for over sixty years. As we fight for moving up Contract negotiations and achieving pay and quality of work life improvements now, be sure to protect the Contract we have today. It's our foundation for building a better tomorrow!

Update 08/22/07: The printing of our Contract is near completion. The printers are in receipt of the Contract and distribution by the Company (per Contractual requirement) will be announced shortly. We are thankful that the Contract Interpretation Committee has been committed to the repeated reviews and corrections to "typos" in the preliminary stages in printing of our Contract.

Update: Excerpt from 11/03/06 E-Lines: Meetings continued this week to press the company for a conclusion to preparing the Contract for printing. While initially the printing of our Contract was delayed due to disputes over executive pay and F/A retirement security, the company has been slow to act on its completion in recent months. Our goal has always been to get the printed Contract in F/A hands as soon as possible. Our Contract Interpretation Committee continues to pour over each draft of the Contract to ensure the hundreds of pages are printed correctly. We had expected to report the end of proofreading long before now, but we continue to find discrepancies in the company's work. We will continue to keep you updated on this process.