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Customer Service Committee Bio - Lori Manuel

Lori Manuel, American Airlines

Executive Vice President, Local 3640, Winston Salem, NC

My name is Lori Manuel. I've been employed with American Airlines, by way of Piedmont Airlines, USAir and US Airways since 1984. I currently work in the Concierge Key department at American. This department handles VIP members and celebrities alike. I have worked in numerous departments, even in management departments prior to voting for the union and our first contract. Of course, I would never cross back to the "other side" again. I have been an officer of Local 3640 in Winston-Salem, NC for over 12 years and my current position is Executive Vice President.

On December 1, 2015, we were successful in bringing the Customer Service group at American Airlines into our contract. They are Airport and Reservations agents. Our local represents the call center in Winston-Salem and in Cary, NC.  The Cary office has over 500 "at home agents" (home based agents) that are represented. We are a right to work state but we fall under the "Railway Labor Act, which means all of our agents are required to pay dues and we are a closed shop. There are approximately 2200 agents between these two offices.

Working on the American campaign had its challenges. This group voted CWA down for over 20 years. In the election prior to 2015, only 150 votes kept them from joining us. I was an Activist and Mobilization Chair at US Airways and I worked extremely hard to get cards signed and answer all of my coworkers’ questions about what a Union is actually about and sharing our experiences with running our Union since our first contract in 1999.  

After we were successful, I presented at a few "roadshow informational sessions" to make sure agents, especially our new Brothers and Sisters at American, were informed on what this contract meant to them. The year 2016 was suppose to be our year to transition all policies and procedures to make sure the Legacy US Airways (LUS) group and Legacy American Airlines (LAA) group is the same. Due to some system limitations, we still have different policies, such as Attendance, and performance Metrics. We do not negotiate attendance or performance, though we do have timelines related to discipline. The company advises us that the systems will be combined prior to the end of 2017.  Once this is accomplished, we will no longer have the need to refer to LAA and LUS. We will be one as a company. 

Here are a few examples:

  • LAA agents were granted a 30 minute flex time, prior to their shift.  If they are late for 15 or 30 minutes, they can stay for the same amount of time at the end of their shift without any occurrence.     
  • LUS agents were counted late after 3 minutes. We have since been able to work out a letter of agreement that this policy would apply to both offices.
  • LAA agents were only granted 4 points, including a tardy, or absences prior to any type of disciplinary level.
  • LUS agents were granted 5 points.

I recently assisted in the training of over 80 new Stewards between our 2 offices. The goal is to make sure that we are treating our agents the same, even with different policies at this time.  Of course, being consistent is goal. We are only as strong as our membership! I'm so happy to join the Customer Service Team. I look forward to working with you and your concerns and if any Airline Knowledge will help you guys with your contract negotiations, please do not hesitate to reach out.

Thank you!  

Lori Manuel, EVP Local 3640