Senate Approves FMLA Coverage For Flight Attendants

/PRNewswire/ -- More than 16 years after the original Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) was passed, flight attendants and flight crews across the country, are finally about to be granted access to the same coverage that has long benefited working families. The Association of Flight Attendants-CWA (AFA-CWA) today applauded the U.S. Senate for approving the Airline Flight Crew Family and Medical Leave Act, S. 1422.

"We are happy to announce to our over 50,000 members that no flight attendant will be left behind when it comes to FMLA coverage anymore," said AFA-CWA International President Patricia Friend. "We have worked alongside Senator Patty Murray on this very important legislation and her leadership has been essential in making this bill a bi-partisan effort to correct and clarify current FMLA language that has repeatedly denied many flight attendants from qualifying for coverage for years."

Currently, flight attendants face many hurdles in order to qualify for FMLA benefits. These hurdles are particular to airline employees since FMLA language has been narrowly interpreted and has failed to take into account "the unique way in which the airline industry counts its workers' hours." The current bill clarifies the original 1993 FMLA law and ensures that flight crews are treated fairly and qualify for benefits. The bill was introduced by a bi-partisan coalition that consisted of Senators Murray (D-WA), Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), Jim Webb (D-VA), Sue Collins (R-ME), Chris Dodd (D-CT) and Kit Bond (R-MO). A similar bill was passed by the House on a unanimous voice vote earlier this year.

"We look forward to an expedited process to finalize this very important bill and for President Obama to officially sign it into law this fall. No one can question the benefits FMLA has provided for working women and men, allowing them to take time off from work to care for themselves or family members," added Friend.

The FMLA requires most employers to provide job-protected unpaid leave to employees who have worked 60 percent of a full-time schedule over the course of a year. However, the courts and federal agencies disregarded that original intent and narrowly defined the "full time schedule" as that of a traditional 40 hour work week, thereby excluding flight attendants whose schedules do not fall within the traditional 9-5 work day. The Airline Flight Crew FMLA corrects this misinterpretation of the original legislation and finally extends this vital coverage to flight crews.

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Delta Supports Flight Attendant Committee's Position on Seniority Integration

/PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL) today issued the following memo from Delta Senior Vice President of In-Flight Service Joanne Smith to the airline's nearly 14,000 pre-merger Delta flight attendants in support of their flight attendant seniority integration committee's position to use a seniority date methodology when integrating the combined flight attendant workgroup.

"The pre-merger Delta In-Flight Seniority Integration Committee has announced their position for a fair and equitable seniority integration method for the combined Delta/Northwest flight attendant workgroup. Seniority integration is perhaps the biggest issue for flight attendants in a merger, and history tells us the outcome never pleases everyone, but based on the team's presentation to us we support their seniority date-based position as a fair and equitable integration method. Here's why:

-- The federal law, which mirrors Delta's policy, requires fair and equitable integration. We believe this means that neither airline should be materially advantaged over the other. Because our seniority distribution in this merger was so similar, the committee's recommendation for an In-Flight seniority date method was a near perfect solution.

-- The data shows that an In-Flight seniority date integration method keeps most pre-merger Delta and Northwest flight attendants within a percentile ranking that is equal to or closely aligned with their ranking on today's seniority lists.

-- The committee's recommendation takes into account a fair and equitable method for accounting for time spent in training.

-- As has been noted previously, the internal order of flight attendants on each pre-merger list has been preserved.

"It is our understanding that the committee also has communicated their recommendation to the AFA. As you know, up to this point the AFA has refused to authorize Northwest flight attendants to participate in this process. If the AFA supports the Delta committee's In-Flight seniority date position -- which is consistent with what the AFA has said is their required integration policy, according to their constitution and bylaws -- we will accept the In- Flight seniority date methodology for the combined workgroup and work to present both pre-merger flight attendant groups with a final, combined seniority list methodology.

"This team has worked very hard over the last two months conducting an exhaustive review of the Delta and Northwest seniority lists, analyzing a significant amount of data, and studying past mergers and arbitration decisions to reach their conclusion. I hope you will take the time to review the information they've issued, including their recommendation, other methods they studied but did not select, and where your percentile ranking is on both the current seniority list, as well as the combined list. I am confident that once you read this information you will better understand how an In-Flight seniority date approach is fair and equitable for our combined workgroup given the circumstances.

"My thanks go out to the entire committee who worked tirelessly on your behalf. We will continue to update you on this process and encourage you to visit the committee's portal page for the latest information."

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Tour De Georgia Presented By AT&T Generates $38.6M Direct Economic Impact For State Of Georgia

One month after the completion of the sixth annual Tour de Georgia presented by AT&T, a post-event evaluation has determined that the direct economic impact of the event reached $38.6 million for Georgia. This surpassed the 2007 economic impact number of $27 million by 40%.

The 2008 Tour de Georgia presented by AT&T, recognized as America’s premier, professional cycling event and rolling festival that covered over 600 miles and seven days each spring, concluded April 27 in Atlanta. Economic impact was determined using data collected by crowd intercept surveys at all start and finish host venue locations.

North Georgia College and University managed the survey development and data collection. The Bureau of Business Research and Economic Development of Georgia Southern University was responsible for data input and analysis. The regional input-output modeling program IMPLAN was used to construct a model of Georgia and models of each region by stage. A total of 1,196 completed surveys were collected between April 21-27 at the 12 host communities which staged either a Tour start or a Tour finish venue.

“We can’t tell how much of the change is due to methodology, but we believe that one of the reasons for the large increase (in economic impact) over last year is inflation, particularly in gasoline. Some of the increase is also due to the significant increase in the number of international visitors. The increase in international visitors is probably due to the devaluation of the dollar making a U.S. trip more affordable,” said Phyllis Isley, Director, Bureau of Business Research and Economic Development at Georgia Southern University.

Economic indicators included assessment of dollars spent by visitors (residents of the area not included) for meals, lodging, transportation, retail and miscellaneous recreation. Analysis of crowd sizes was determined by Georgia State Patrol and local law enforcement estimates. While the attendance figures for 2008 were down 20% from last year, over 400,000 this year as compared to 515,000 in 2007 and 500,000 in 2006, spending was up significantly during the event.

"We were delighted to host the Team Time Trial stage of the Tour de Georgia presented by AT&T. "For a first time event -- and on a Thursday -- we were extremely pleased with the spectator turnout and the event overall," said Road Atlanta President Geoff Lee, regarding an estimated attendance of 20,000 fans at Stage 4. “A majority of these very enthusiastic cycling fans were making their first visit to Road Atlanta and obviously had a good time. From a marketing standpoint, the Tour was very successful for us. We hope these new fans will come back for our major events like the 11th annual Petit Le Mans Oct. 1-4."

The Tour was founded in 2003 as a tourism vehicle to showcase Georgia and its communities by the marketing arm of the state, now known as the Georgia Department of Economic Development. GDEcD is responsible for developing tourism, which is Georgia’s second largest industry behind agriculture. The Tour has proven that it is indeed a strong sports property that is more than a bicycle race. In just six years since its inception, the Tour de Georgia has produced big numbers – 3.2 million spectators and over $186 million direct economic impact to the state of Georgia.

“The Tour de Georgia presented by AT&T is a terrific event that brings long-lasting economic impact to Georgia,” said Ken Stewart, commissioner of the Georgia Department of Economic Development, the agency that serves as a marketing arm for the state and presenting sponsor of the Tour de Georgia. “Our communities look forward each year not only to the excitement surrounding the Tour, but to the worldwide exposure they gain by hosting it. The Tour de Georgia is not only one of the world’s premiere cycling events, it is a major international tourism attraction for Georgia.”

In addition, the Tour de Georgia presented by AT&T is proud to have set a record in 2008 for funds raised for its beneficiaries, the Aflac Cancer Center and Blood Disorders Service of Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta and the Georgia Cancer Coalition. This was the first year the Tour engaged with helping Children’s Healthcare, and it was the sixth consecutive year partnering with the Coalition. With donations pledges from Tour sponsors and generated by ancillary events throughout race week, the Tour de Georgia was able to donate over $500,000 for its charities, doubling what had been done in the past five years.

"The Tour de Georgia presented by AT&T is an international sporting event that brings thousands of spectators and cyclists to our great state. We also worked very hard to promote healthy living and lifestyles among our citizens and guests. This year's Health & Wellness Expos were a hit at every stop, from Savannah to Atlanta. We were able to a raise a record amount of money and awareness for our beneficiary as well, Children's Healthcare," said Lt. Governor Casey Cagle, who serves as the Chairman of the Tour de Georgia Foundation.

The Tour de Georgia gained international stature in 2004 when Tour de France champion and cancer survivor Lance Armstrong won the event. In 2005 the Tour de Georgia was elevated to a 2. Hors Classe (2.HC) road cycling competition by the world’s governing body of the sport, the Union Cycliste International (UCI) and expanded from six to seven days. This made the Tour de Georgia one of the highest rated stage races outside of Europe, and gained the distinction as a tune-up event for the prestigious Tour de France. Four teams in the field this year expect to race in the Tour de France in July, including American-based teams High Road and Slipstream Chipotle presented by H30, German-based Gerolsteiner, and Denmark’s Team CSC. The 2008 Tour de Georgia presented by AT&T was won by Team High Road’s Kanstantin Sivtsov of Belarus.

2008 Overall State Direct Economic Impact:
- $ 38.6 million is an increase of 40% from 2007, which generated a direct economic impact of $27.56 million
- 41% of spectators indicated they stayed more than one night during their visit to Georgia, specifically to watch the Tour
- Of those overnight visitors, 6% were International visitors (an overall increase of 5% from 2007)
- The average overnight visitor spent $380 per day at the Tour; 55% of that going to accommodations and transportation costs.

Delta Flight Attendants Reject AFA Representation

PRIME NEWSWIRE -- Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL) has received notification from the National Mediation Board (NMB) that a decisive majority -- more than 60 percent -- of eligible flight attendants rejected representation by the Association of Flight Attendants/Communication Workers of America (AFA) in the representation election at Delta, and the airline will continue a direct relationship with its flight attendants.

"We are pleased that Delta's flight attendants clearly believe that our unique culture and direct relationship are worth preserving," said Delta CEO Richard Anderson. "Delta continues to be the best advocate for its people, and our employees recognize the benefits of working together to enhance their careers and drive successful results for themselves and our company."

Joanne Smith, senior vice president -- In-Flight Service and Global Product Development, added, "This decision was one of the biggest our flight attendants faced in their career at Delta and it arose during some challenging times in our industry. Through all of these distractions -- soaring fuel costs, a softening economy and an unrelenting AFA campaign of scare tactics and inaccurate information -- the professionalism of all of our flight attendants shone as they maintained an unwavering focus on safety and service. This comes as no surprise however, because that is the Delta Difference; it is what sets us apart from the rest of this industry.

"We have many exciting and challenging opportunities ahead of us. Together, with our employees, we will continue to make Delta a source of pride for our people and an airline that delivers great service to our customers."