MEC Archives

Northwest Flight 59t from Amsterdam arrived in Boston with an extra passenger on Wednesday after a woman on board gave birth somewhere over Canada.

The mother was eight and a half months pregnant when she went into labor two hours out of Boston.

The flight crew asked the passengers if there was a doctor on board, and as the flight approached Boston from Canada,

The child’s head had already emerged, and the rest of the delivery went “perfectly,” according to Dr. Raman. “Northwest Airlines had all of the equipment we needed to be there, and even though we didn’t have a labor room delivery set up, it was just perfect,” Raman said. They handed the baby to its mother and everyone on board reportedly burst into cheers.

NOTE: the Doctors complimented the Crew for their help and being knowledgeable and having all the right equipment.

See video from Boston TV here:
http://www.thebostonchannel.com/video/18389513/index.html

MAC to consider Delta deal next week
The Metropolitan Airports Commission will meet in special session Tuesday to consider a tentative agreement with Delta Air Lines that would lift penalties for closing Northwest Airlines’ headquarters in exchange for preserving jobs and air service in Minnesota.Read Full Article Here

LIZ FEDOR startribune

ATLANTA (AP)—An arbitration panel ruled Monday that the seniority lists of Delta Air Lines and Northwest Airlines pilots should be integrated based on pilots’ status and aircraft category.
The three-member panel’s decision, which affects roughly 12,000 pilots, is binding and effective immediately. The ruling, at least as far as methodology, appeared to be a win for pre-merger Delta pilots.

Seniority Award Here..Read More Here
AFA Response..Read More Here
Yahoo Story..Read More Here

Heidi Joost Award

Please join the Association of Flight Attendants by honoring a Northwest flight attendant who has demonstrated heroism in the line of duty as an Inflight Safety Professional. This award carries the name and honors the memory of Northwest flight attendant Heidi Joost, who died while carrying out her duties as a safety professional.  Heidi perished, along with several passengers, in the tailcone of an NWA DC-9 in an aircraft accident at DTW in 1990.  We welcome member nominations for this award and ask that they are submitted to Janette Rook at: before December 31, 2008. 

Read 1990 New York Times Article on DTW Accident *HERE!*

A joint campaign has been set up and a Committee of Northwest & Delta flight attendants (C3) are in place to achieve a successful organizing campaign, to win union representation for the Delta and Northwest combined flight attendant group at the ‘new’ Delta. Our ‘50 State Strategy’ to win this vote requires flight attendant volunteers in every state where Delta and Northwest flight attendants live. To join us, please visit the Join The Campaign page of our website. 

October 2, 2008
Washington, DC - The National Mediation Board (NMB) ruled in a 2-1 decision this week that it would ignore the numerous charges of interference by Delta Airlines management, filed by the Association of Flight Attendants – CWA, AFL-CIO with the NMB, that occurred during a recent representational election by the airlines flight attendants. The ruling was made by the three-member panel of presidential appointees that forms the NMB.  One member of the NMB issued a strong dissent saying that an investigation is warranted. The NMB is the federal agency charged with oversight on union representation elections and contract negotiations in the aviation industry under the Railway Labor Act (RLA).

In yet another failure of a government regulatory agency to hold a corporation accountable, the NMB refused to investigate any of the numerous allegations of misconduct by Delta management, said AFA-CWA International President Pat Friend. Despite very specific and an overwhelming number of instances of management intimidation and interference with the right of employees to join a union, the majority of the NMB decided to accept Delta management’s denial of having done any of the things their flight attendants witnessed, said Friend. This NMB has forgotten its stated mission: to promote and protect effective collective bargaining and representation; and has once again sided with corporate America to deny workers the right to a voice in their workplace. It is long past time to hold this agency accountable for their support of the corporate agenda.

The NMBs policies and conduct regarding its oversight responsibility for aviation union representation elections was the subject of an intense Congressional hearing last week. Despite the many serious questions from congressional leaders regarding the NMBs conduct it continues to violate its mission and fails to protect the right of workers to choose union representation without the interference, influence or coercion of the boss, said Friend.

In his dissenting opinion, NMB Member Harry Hoglander recommended that an investigation of the charges be conducted. By failing to direct such an investigation, wrote Hoglander, the Board majority has abrogated their duty under the Railway Labor Act (RLA). The RLA governs labor-management relations in the aviation industry.

AFA-CWA will pursue all available avenues to ensure the Northwest and Delta flight attendants have the opportunity for a fair election at the new Delta Airlines.

For over 60 years, the Association of Flight Attendants has been serving as the voice for flight attendants in the workplace, in the aviation industry, in the media and on Capitol Hill.  More than 55,000 flight attendants at 20 airlines come together to form AFA-CWA, the world’s largest flight attendant union. AFA is part of the 700,000-member strong Communications Workers of America (CWA), AFL-CIO. Visit us at http://www.afanet.org.