LOA 9 - Implementation Agreement

This Letter of Agreement is made and entered into in accordance with the Railway Labor Act by and between United Airlines, Inc. (the “Company”) and the Association of Flight Attendants – CWA, AFL-CIO (the “Union”).  

WHEREAS, the Company and the Union are parties to the 2025-2030 collective bargaining agreement (“the Agreement”), which will set forth and combine rates of pay, rules and working conditions of the Flight Attendant group, and  

WHEREAS, the parties desire that the Agreement be completely implemented as soon as possible consistent with the limitations imposed by technical restrictions that cannot be dealt with by the Date of Signing of the Agreement (“DOS”), and  

WHEREAS, the Agreement contains numerous provisions that will require substantial programming to place into effect, and  

WHEREAS, the parties wish to set forth the process, sequence, and timeline by which the provisions of the Agreement will be implemented,  

NOW THEREFORE, the parties hereto agree as follows:  

A. General  

1. This Implementation Agreement contains the full understandings and complete agreement of the parties regarding the implementation of the terms of the Agreement. 

2. Any disputes regarding this Implementation Agreement that the Joint Implementation Team is unable to resolve shall be referred to the MEC President and the Vice President of Inflight and if the matter still cannot be resolved, to the dispute   Implementation Agreement resolution procedure identified in Paragraph D of this Implementation Agreement.  

3. This Implementation Agreement will be effective on the date of signing. The individual provisions of this Implementation Agreement shall not become permanent, but shall sunset when implementation of the Agreement is accomplished.  

5. The earliest implementation of the Agreement is desired by both parties, and they pledge to work diligently towards that goal. The parties acknowledge that by its nature, predicting implementation is imprecise, and recognize that technology and operational imperatives can affect any implementation schedule. It is the parties’ intention and desire that all implementation dates and targets be met as planned. However, if technology allows, earlier implementation shall occur. 

B. Joint Implementation Team  

1. The parties shall establish a Joint Implementation Team (“JIT”) consisting of six members (three Union members and three Company members). This team will determine what changes need to be made in order to implement the scheduling provisions and comply with the intent of the Agreement. Additionally, the JIT will resolve any scheduling issues that arise due to implementation that are not covered by the Agreement. This team will meet as needed during the implementation period. The three Union members will be provided flight pay loss by the Company; such flight pay loss shall not be counted against the flight pay loss credit provided to the Union in accordance with Paragraph P. of the Agreement, Section 30 (Union Activities). 

2. The JIT shall have responsibility for the timely and effective implementation of the Agreement. To satisfy its responsibility for timely and effective implementation the JIT shall have active ongoing involvement in development of systems integration and processes and the decisions relating thereto, including adjustments to the implementation schedule as contemplated by paragraph A.5., above.

3. The JIT shall have authority to set its own schedule, meeting as often, in such locations, and for as long as it deems necessary to complete the Agreement implementation. It may also utilize the services of such subject matter experts from the Union and the Company as it deems necessary or advisable. If the JIT agrees Union subject matter experts are required, their flight pay loss will be provided by the Company. Such flight pay loss shall not be counted against the flight pay loss credit provided to the Union in accordance with Paragraph P. of the Agreement, Section 30 (Union Activities). 

4. The JIT shall work as a collaborative team. To that end, JIT decisions regarding the implementation schedule and the manner of implementation shall be by mutual agreement of the JIT members.  

5. The JIT shall oversee and monitor all Flight Attendant scheduling and related aspects of implementation, as well as any other elements of the Agreement that the Company and the Union choose to refer to the JIT. The JIT shall have authority to establish and amend all timelines for implementation by mutual agreement. 

In the event there is an impasse over the implementation schedule or any other aspect of implementation, the matter shall be referred to the MEC President and the Senior V.P. of Inflight for resolution. In the event the matter cannot be resolved within thirty (30) days from the initial impasse it can be referred by either party to the mediation/arbitration process established in Paragraph D of this Letter of Agreement. The parties will attempt to identify all unresolved issues so that only one mediation/arbitration process with respect to implementation is required. If the matter is referred to arbitration, the arbitration panel shall have the authority to establish and amend timelines and to provide relief to any party harmed by delay in implementation including any Flight Attendant or group of Flight Attendant affected by the unresolved issues, regardless of whether the individual Flight Attendant(s) can demonstrate a specific harm related to the delay. 

6. The JIT shall have access to the areas of the Company and the Union, and information and data needed for such oversight, provided it does not interfere with the ongoing operation and provided that appropriate confidentiality agreements have been executed for access to confidential or sensitive information and data. 

7. The JIT shall be responsible for compiling information to be published to the Flight Attendants explaining the terms of the new Agreement and their implementation.  

8. The JIT shall report on the progress of the implementation and on their activities in support thereof to the MEC President and the Senior Vice President, Inflight no less than once per month until the MEC President and the Senior Vice President agree that monthly reports are no longer necessary. The JIT may, at the request of the MEC President, hold informational meetings with Flight Attendants to discuss the timing and progress of implementation. 

C.  Implementation Status Review  

Every quarter after DOS, the Parties will convene an implementation status review meeting to review and discuss the implementation process relative to the implementation dates. Included in the meetings will be representatives from Labor, Inflight and IT DT from the Company and from the union members of the implementation team as well as others involved in the implementation process. The  Managing Director of Labor Relations  shall attend on behalf of the Company and the MEC President shall attend on behalf of AFA. If the parties cannot agree on specific solutions to address delayed implementation, the matter will be referred to Paragraph D, below.

D. Mediation/Arbitration Process 

1. Not later than sixty (60) days after Date of Signing, the parties will select a neutral mediator/arbitrator (the “neutral”) to mediate and/or arbitrate any unresolved issue(s). The parties will bear equally the neutral’s compensation and expenses.  

2. Mediated Negotiations  

a. The parties will engage in negotiations mediated by the neutral as to all identified issues for a minimum of three (3) days and a maximum of five (5) days.  

b. These mediated negotiations will commence at a mutually agreed upon date and location.

c. If the parties are unable to reach an agreement through mediated negotiations, each party’s proposals shall be submitted to the neutral.  

3. Arbitration  

a. The neutral will take oral and written evidence in support of and in opposition to these respective proposals. 

b. The neutral may award the proposal of either party as to an open issue (if the issue has not been resolved before the award), or may award a compromise between the proposals of the parties. The neutral’s award should conform to the terms and intent of the Agreement as closely as possible. 

c. The neutral will not award a proposal that modifies the rates, rules and working conditions specified in the Agreement. 

d. The neutral may provide additional relief to the Association or any Flight Attendant or group of Flight Attendants affected by the unresolved issues, regardless of whether the individual Flight Attendant(s) can demonstrate a specific harm related to the delay. 

e. If the neutral determines that the positions of both parties on an open issue modifies the terms of the Agreement, the neutral will so advise the parties, explaining the basis of the his determination, and the parties will then submit revised proposals.  

f. Arbitration hearings before the neutral will be conducted at a mutually agreed upon time and will be transcribed if the parties agree. 

g. The neutral’s award as to an open issue will be final and binding.

E. Implementation Plan

For purposes of this Letter of Agreement, the effective date of the Agreement will be the beginning of the first full Bid Period following the date of signing. 

The attached document identifies those provisions that shall be effective upon the first day of the Bid Period in which date of signing of the Agreement occurs and those provisions which will be implemented thereafter. Until a provision is implemented, Flight Attendants will continue operating under the provisions of the 2016-2021 Agreement, or as may otherwise be agreed by the Company and the Union.

The parties to this Letter of Agreement hereby agree that it shall run concurrently with the 2025-2030 Agreement, and shall be concurrently subject to the provisions pertaining to duration and amendment contained therein. The parties hereto have signed this Letter of Agreement this 30th day of July, 2025.  

FOR THE FLIGHT ATTENDANTS IN THE SERVICE OF UNITED AIRLINES, INC. FOR UNITED AIR LINES, INC: 

Implementation Timeline

1. Provisions of the 2025-2030 Agreement will be implemented on a schedule as specified below, subject to the terms of paragraphs A.5, B.2. and B.5., above. Appendix A contains a list of provisions to be implemented on Date of Signing. Appendix B contains projected implementation dates for provisions which will require additional time to program and implement.

2. Certain other provisions will require a period of time administratively to implement and will be implemented as soon as possible after DOS as determined by the JIT.  Any provisions of the Agreement not specified below will be implemented on a schedule determined by the JIT.

3. Boarding Pay will be implemented for the December 2025 Bid Month. 

4. Any items that are specified below as “DOS+” will be analyzed by JIT, along with the Digital Technology team from the Company, to develop accurate implementation timelines.

5. The JIT will develop and publish projected implementation timelines for such items within 90 days of DOS along with any updated timelines for the list below, subject to the terms of paragraphs A.5, B.2. and B.5., above.

Appendix A: Contract Items: DOS Completion

Appendix B: DOS+ Implementation