"Today, your EB reached an agreement with UPS that allows IPA crewmembers the option to take unpaid time off with full benefits on a bid period by bid period basis. Starting today, on strictly a volunteer basis, crewmembers will have the ability to request taking off the December and January bid period. The Company will then decide how many leaves to grant by fleet, seat, and domicile and award them on a seniority basis.

As an alternative, crewmembers may volunteer to bid a part-time December/January schedule. Again, the Company will decide how many part-time lines to build by fleet, seat, and domicile and then award them on a seniority basis. Both volunteer programs may be offered at the Company’s discretion in future bid periods. The Voluntary Time-Off Letter of Agreement (LOA 11-03) is available on the IPA home page.

Members will rightly ask: “Why are these programs being offered, and why offer them now?”

First, in the crewmember contract negotiation survey, an overwhelming majority of IPA members (over 80%) indicated their desire to have the option of taking incentivized time off utilizing programs similar to those offered in connection with 2009’s Voluntary Job Protection Program (VJPP.) The overwhelming majority of members indicated that they desired and would like the option of taking time off with full benefits. Most ranked this as an important priority to achieve in the next contract.

Rather than expend negotiating capital on achieving this objective in contract negotiations, the EB saw an opportunity to put in place time-off programs desired by the membership right now. While this new LOA will expire with the current contract, a successful “test drive” of these programs now will increase the likelihood that they are included in the new contract without prolonged negotiations. We think that’s important.

Second, to the extent that crewmembers voluntarily take time off each bid period, this will reduce system staffing availability. This LOA, working in conjunction with the IPA Solidarity Policy, will eventually, we believe, speed up the day when all of our furloughed members are back on property. It is important to emphasize that this is a voluntary program. The EB will not support or tolerate attempts to pressure members to participate.

Will the furlough end quickly? Well, it will not happen overnight. The Company is of the belief that they are overstaffed. The Company’s belief that they are overstaffed is the main reason we have been able to get them to agree to one of our contract objectives now outside of the negotiating process. But we firmly believe that these two programs—the Voluntary Incentivized Time-Off LOA and the Solidarity Policy—working together, can and will eventually tip the balance and make a real difference in expediting the return of our members.

Now let’s discuss some details. The Voluntary Short Term Leaves of Absence are pretty much modeled off of the previous VJPP program. Benefits, including A-Plan pension credits and health care, will continue even though you are away from work, just like the prior program. A big change is that you will not have to sign-up months in advance, but rather on a bid-by-bid basis for a single bid period off.

Next, part-time lines, still to be known as reduced guarantee or “RDG” lines, are different in some respects. Most significantly, regular, non-reduced VTO lines will be built and awarded prior to the building of reduced RDG lines. The Executive Board reached a consensus that building the lines in this order—a significant change from the original program—was desirable to protect the seniority rights of regular, non-reduced VTO line bidders. In order to make this change possible, the opening of line improvement trip trade submissions has been moved three hours from 12:01 to 15:01.

RDG lines will carry a guarantee of 37.5 credit hours. All duty is restricted to eight (8) duty days within a fourteen (14) day block contained within the pay period unless all duties are contained within one pay period with no duties in the other. These rules prevent the spreading of flying throughout the bid period and ensure that RDG lines will contain larger blocks of time off. Again, the specific rules and changes are outlined in the new agreement.

We would like to have had more time to have these details available to you prior to the December/January bid. As it is, the ink is literally just drying on the agreement and the volunteer sign-up period for bid 12-01, as a result, will be compressed.

If you are interested in taking December and January off or flying a reduced time line during these months, you can go to the IPA web site homepage starting today and indicate your interest. We will transmit the data to UPS. The volunteer window for this bid (12-01) will close by 17:00 SDF time Tuesday, November 1, 2011.

Again, the reason for this action is two-fold. One, it is a move to take a piece the membership wants in contract negotiations effectively off the table by putting it in place right now. No negotiation chips will be spent. Second, the Voluntary Time-Off LOA will predictably reduce block hours being flown by crewmembers in the system. This, together with your continued support of the IPA Solidarity Policy, we strongly believe, will expedite the eventual return of the furloughees.

In a time when the Company firmly believes they are overstaffed, we aren’t predicting a quick end to the furlough. But it is time to do all we can to help steer the ship in a different direction, particularly if we can gain a contract objective in the process. We think this is a good move for all members, furloughed and active.

Thank you for your time. Please fly safe, be professional and remain united."