thrust

To summarize:

Pilots pay protected for COVID-19 quarantines for duration. Includes self-quarantines for sick family member. Sick bank restored for COVID-19 diagnosis.

1. Voluntary unpaid Leave of Absense, retain all benefits and accrue Length of Service, up to 12 months.

2. Voluntary Short-Term LoA, paid 55 credited hours, 1/3/6 months long, retain all benefits, 401k/profit sharing eligible, required to maintain currency but that’s it.

3. Voluntary Permanent LoA, age 62+ paid 50 hours until age 65, retain all benefits and 401k, etc as above, remaining sick deposited into HSA.

Looks like a helluva job by APA and AA.

Dobbs18

If you are an AA pilot the LOA should be really easy to find...but the gist of the 3rd is just an unpaid LOA in which you accrue LOS and retain benefits at active employee rates.

AllYourBaseAreB

Third one is an extended unpaid leave up to 1 year, with no requirement to stay current.

short term is either 1,3, or 6 months. Must maintain currency. Paid 55 hrs, with all bennies.

permanent is 50 hrs till 65, all bennies, sick time goes to a HRA at a discounted rate. CANNOT come back to flying EVER. 62+ years old to apply

206321

Amazing when the company shows intention to negotiate!

Good job APA.LOA-20-001 has two primary provisions: Pay Protection for pilots impacted by COVID-19, and incentivized Voluntary Leaves of Absence. I encourage everyone to read the full text of the LOA, but here is a 30,000-foot view of the agreement.

Pay Protection:

• Pilots who are placed in quarantine based on concerns related to COVID-19 or who are diagnosed with COVID-19 will be pay protected during the duration of the evaluation, treatment, or quarantine.
• Pay protection also applies to pilots who self-quarantine due to a family member being diagnosed with COVID-19.
• Pilots who call in sick and are subsequently diagnosed with COVID-19 will have their sick time restored to their bank and will be pay protected.

Voluntary Leaves of Absence:

Three different voluntary Leaves of Absence will be offered. The special voluntary leaves are designed to reduce temporary pilot overages caused by current circumstances.

• Voluntary Extended Leaves of Absence (“VELOA”): A VELOA will be an unpaid leave; however, the pilot will continue to accrue Length of Service (LOS), will continue to have access to employee benefits at active pilot rates, and will retain travel privileges similar to an Active pilot. These leaves may be up to 12 months in duration.
• Voluntary Short-Term Leaves of Absence (“VSTLOA”): Pilots who take a VSTLOA will be paid 55 credited hours for the duration of the leave. Leaves will be 1, 3, or 6 months long. The pilot will continue to accrue sick and vacation, be eligible for all benefits at the same rates as active pilots, and retain travel benefits. Pay for the 55 hours will be eligible for 401(k) contributions and profit-sharing calculations. Pilots on a VSTLOA will be required to maintain currency but will have no other flying obligations.
• Voluntary Permanent Leave of Absence (“VPLOA”): Pilots between the ages of 62 and 65 will be eligible for a VPLOA. VPLOA pilots will be paid 50 hours per month until age 65. VPLOA pilots are eligible for all benefits at the same rates as active pilots, and retain travel benefits. Pay for the 50 hours will be eligible for 401(k) contributions and profit-sharing calculations. At retirement, the balance of the pilot’s sick bank will be deposited into a Health Reimbursement Account (HRA) at 40% of the pilot’s applicable hourly rate. A VPLOA pilot will remain in this leave until retirement. This leave is permanent and cannot be changed by either the pilot or the Company.

On a related note, I know the possibility of a furlough is on many of your minds. I can tell you that at this point, the likelihood of a furlough has not been suggested by either side. If that changes, we will let you know immediately. One of the main objectives of the LOA ratified today is to mitigate that threat. At this point, it is too early to tell if we are headed down that path, but understand that stopping and reversing the training machinery would be incredibly costly and time-consuming. It is in our mutual interest to avoid reductions by way of furlough.

Furthermore, the airline industry is very different from what it was just before 9/11. Domestic load factors have increased from an average of 60% in 1990, to 69% in 2001, to 85% in 2019. International loads have risen from 67%, to 72%, to 84% over the same timeframe. The point is that the world travels by air far more than in the past, and the industry has become more efficient, so those loads are likely to return after the pandemic has passed (hopefully sooner rather than later). Additionally, furloughed pilots would require five or more weeks to requalify in their aircraft, greatly reducing the ability of American Airlines to resume normal service when the demand inevitably ramps back up.

Know that while we finally have the basic protections necessary for a professional pilot to operate in a fast-evolving public health emergency, your union leadership will continue to operate “all hands on deck” until this crisis has passed, and we will continue updating you daily for as long as the situation remains critical.

PRS Guitars

Am I missing something? Has the company agreed to this?

HobGoblin

yes, and yes.

thrust

The LOA was written from the company (KS) to the union (EF)... so yes?

biigD

Still no e-mail. Has this been sent out to the unwashed masses yet?

Arado 234

Late last night.

Name User

I think this is good news but worry about the costs the corporation takes on and how it will impact its future. I estimate this will cost about $2b to pay just the retirees assuming 4,000 take it over three years. This is a large cost that won't allow the company to adequately compete against the ULCC's whom I fear will gain a substantial foothold after this. Spirit is by far my largest worry.

I guess what I'm saying is, I worry AA will become what US Airways was...a slowly dying carrier not able to compete due to overburdened costs.

I'm not trying to be negative but I think it's also important to take a bigger picture.