April 22, 2025
Participants for AMFA
Earl Clark – Region II Director
Jason Salazar – Airline Representative
Ernest Harris – Member at Large
Peter Manikowski – Legal Counsel
Participants for Spirit Airlines
Robert Jones – Vice President, Labor Relations
Barney Whaley – Regional Director Maintenance
Joe Harmon– Sr. Manager, Maintenance
Kimberly Maya – Human Resources
Tabitha Rybacki – Paralegal
Stefanie Mederos – Outside Legal Counsel
The AMFA-Spirit Negotiating Committee (the “Committee”) is providing this update to the Membership at Spirit Airlines (“Spirit”). This is the only official source of negotiating communications by the Committee.
The parties held a three-day bargaining session, April 15-17, 2025, in Fort Lauderdale at Company HQ to continue bargaining toward a first collective bargaining agreement (CBA) for the Spirit group. This was our seventh session in mediation with the National Mediation Board (“Board”).
On Day One, AMFA finalized and passed its proposal on Article 5 – Hours of Service. Our goal in this pass was to give you stable scheduling and quality of life. We also want to make the bid procedures fair and predictable. The parties caucused after AMFA made its proposal.
On Day Two, the Company made a counter-proposal on Article 11 – Filling of Vacancies. AMFA reviewed that proposal and found some alignment with the Company on many issues. We focused on the procedures for filling of temporary vacancies and passed another counter-proposal on Article 11 in the afternoon. The parties then caucused and discussed internally.
During the day we also had productive discussions on how overtime is distributed and what methods might work at Spirit (e.g., seniority-based only, hours equalization, volunteer). AMFA remains concerned about favoritism in the awarding of overtime and will continue to press for an equitable system that the Company can administer efficiently.
At the end of Day Two, the Company said it would have proposals on Article 4 – Classifications, Article 11 – Filling of Vacancies, and potentially Article 5 – Hours of Service. The Company also said it would possibly be prepared with a proposal on Article 6 - Overtime in May. The Company suggested we start at 8:30 a.m. the next morning.
On Day Three, your AMFA Committee was prepared at 8:30 a.m. but then waited until 11:30 while the Company representatives continued to caucus, took other calls, and allowed non-negotiating work to distract their focus away from the bargaining table. If this type of unproductive behavior continues, we will confer with the Mediator regarding meeting locations away from Company HQ.
The Company then made counter-proposals on Article 4 – Classifications of Work and Article 11 – Vacancies. On Classifications, this is the first proposal we have seen from the Company in these negotiations. The Company’s approach was to not have Lead Maintenance Controllers or Lead Inspectors while AMFA previously proposed and reiterated that it is important to have these classifications. The Company is seeking to maintain the “Sr. Technician” classifications and keep all other Classifications language very broad – we prefer the specific. A productive off-the-record discussion occurred regarding how to bridge these differences.
The Company’s pass on Article 11 – Vacancies brought the parties closer to alignment. The issue of if and how to fill temporary vacancies remains open.
In sum, we remain concerned about the pace of these negotiations – AMFA is prepared to bargain efficiently to deliver you a strong contract your hard work and sacrifices deserve. While the continued positive and collaboration with the Company is appreciated, it is ultimately the written proposals and agreements that will go in a CBA. The Company must focus and reduce distractions.
During this session, it was also announced that Dave Davis will become the new Spirit CEO. We look forward to his involvement in moving these negotiations forward with all due speed.
The next bargaining session is set for May 6-8, 2025, in Fort Lauderdale.
Remember – stay engaged, remain informed, and continue to support the Negotiating Committee as that support increases the ability to bargain a CBA your hard work deserves.
Fraternally,
AMFA-Spirit Negotiating Committee
