“Direct Relationship” Means Management Has 100% of the Power

Management’s latest "Rumor Has It" email (October 16) dropped in our inboxes, and corporate is working overtime to spin union democracy as a bad thing. Under the title "YOUR ‘VOICE’ WITH AFA," Delta management tries to convince us that having a union means giving up control, while claiming their "direct relationship" is the only way to have a say. Let's break down the misleading claims in their October 16 message and see why every point they make actually proves why we need a legally binding contract.

 "You Don’t Elect Your Negotiating Committee" vs. Corporate Dictatorship: Management claims that AFA members don't directly elect their negotiating committee or national officers.

• The Reality: Flight Attendants directly elect their Local Executive Council (LEC) officers. Those elected Flight Attendant leaders form the Master Executive Council (MEC) and select our negotiating team. Most importantly: no contract ever takes effect without a direct, system-wide vote and ratification by every single Flight Attendant.
• The Hypocrisy: Who elects Delta’s VP of In-Flight Service, Field Service Managers, or the high-priced corporate labor attorneys who decide our pay and work rules? Management hand-picks them behind closed doors without a single Flight Attendant vote. We currently get zero vote on who decides what’s appropriate to “give” us and zero vote when corporate unilaterally alters the Flight Attendant Work Rules or Programs & Policies Handbook.

The Truth About Union Dues: Management attacks AFA dues, claiming they were raised without individual member votes and warning that failure to pay dues can affect your job.

• The Reality: Dues rates are determined by the AFA Constitution & Bylaws that is overseen democratically by the AFA Board of Directors—which is made up entirely of directly-elected Flight Attendant leaders from every represented airline. Those dues fund independent legal counsel, professional contract negotiators, safety/health specialists, and grievance defense teams. AFA members voted in 2003 to put in place an automatic stabilizer to address the cost of inflation, tied to union contracts improving across sectors. Prior to this year, AFA dues had not increased since before COVID.
• The Real Cost of "Zero Dues": What does "zero dues" under Delta’s "direct relationship" actually cost us? It costs us uncompensated airport sit time, an arbitrary 50% ceiling on boarding pay, unpaid medical leave cutoffs through Sedgwick, and at-will employment status where you can be disciplined without due process and an independent System Board of Adjustment. Dues are a small investment that pays back tenfold in contractually guaranteed wages, rest rules, sick leave, healthcare, and job security. Oh, and we won’t collect a cent in dues for our own representation at Delta until a majority of us vote to approve our first union contract.

"Direct Relationship" Means Management Has 100% of the Power: Management closes their email by claiming that Delta's "direct relationship fosters open communication between employees and leaders."

• The Reality: Under a "direct relationship," communication is a one-way street. Look at Delta's Employee Involvement Group (EIG): the EIG's own bylaws explicitly designate our most critical issues—base pay, vacation amounts, health insurance, and absence programs—as "Out of Scope." When core compensation and benefits are completely off the table, a "direct relationship" simply means total corporate control. Management decides when, where, and how the “rules” apply. 

The Bottom Line: Why is management spending so much time dissecting and skewing the reality of AFA's constitution, election procedures, and bylaws? Because Delta management knows that a Collective Bargaining Agreement (Contract) under the Railway Labor Act shifts power away from the corporate boardroom to Flight Attendants and locks in our rights under federal law.

Don't let corporate spin distract you. Every anti-union email management sends is proof of how powerful we become when we stand together.

Turn their scare tactics into our solidarity. Sign your AFA card today to have a real say in our future! Sign it to secure it!