Riga Update: October 17, 2025

Dear Crew,

Greetings from Riga! 

This newsletter includes updates on the following:

1. Riga Visit
2. UK AOC
3. Grievances
4. Seniority Lists
5. AFA Union Committee Members and Reps
6. Furloughs

1. Riga Visit

We met with management over the past few days to discuss the upcoming furloughs, the winter schedule, several Letters Of Agreement (LOAs) for signing, and demotions.

LOAs

We have come to a tentative agreement on the Furlough LOA, which includes provisions for Voluntary Leave In Lieu of Furlough (VLLF), Involuntary Furloughs, payouts, and benefits.

This has been passed up the management chain for approval and signing. Once that has been completed, we will be able to post it on the website and share with the crew.

We have also proposed 2 additional LOAs, one being an update to our Scheduling Agreement, and the other about future recruitment for crew with Special Qualifications.

Those LOAs have also been passed up the management chain and we hope to receive further updates on this in the coming weeks.

Winter Schedule 

While in Riga, we had the opportunity to speak to the Director of Crew Management (Planning, Replanning, etc) about the US winter schedule.

 NO AOC

As most of you are aware, FCO-LAX is now ending on November 1, 2025 instead of it's original date. This has caused significant adjustments in the November 2025 schedule for NO AOC crew members and will, of course, affect the December 2025 schedule as well.

FCO-JFK is also slightly reducing frequency in November and after November 5, will fly Mon, Tues, Thurs, Fri, Sat, Sun. There will be no flights on Wednesdays

It will return to daily flights from December 1, 2025 until the route ends for the season on January 12, 2026

 UK AOC

Several crew were trained for UK AOC this month, and there will be another class next month. 

When it comes to winter operations to the US, LGW-JFK flights and LGW-MCO flights will also have reduced frequency starting in November that will continue for the rest of the season. 

Those who are trained/training for UK currently have RSV on their rosters in place of trips, but we expect those to be filled in when they have flights available for our crew.

Demotions

Due to the reductions in crew worldwide, it has become necessary for demotions of special qualified crew (Pursers) to occur.

These reductions are currently taking place in all bases and for the US, are occurring in reverse seniority order as per our CBA.

Our Purser list prior to reductions, including Ground Instructors, is at 45. 

These Purser reductions may continue in the US and one of our LOAs proposed specifically addresses giving demoted pursers first opportunity at interviews when those roles need to be filled once again.

2. UK AOC

There were questions asked by the crew about whether or not there would be an additional bid for UK AOC in January.

As of today, Management has confirmed that there will be no additional bidding for the UK, however, that does not mean that you may not be required to move to the UK AOC once flying on NO AOC ceases.

Currently, if additional reductions in crew are needed, you will be required to transfer unless you are on a Voluntary Leave of Absence.

3. Grievances

We were also checking the legalities of our CBA pertaining to Voluntary Leaves of Absence with AFA legal department and have confirmed a violation. We have filed an MEC Grievance as we see a violation of the contract. The company has 30 days to respond and we will update you on this process as we move forward.

This MEC Grievance will not postpone or affect any Involuntary Furloughs commencing on November 1, 2025.  

Several crew members have reached out to us to discuss the WARN Act and potential violations related to the Involuntary Furlough announcement. After the review of terms and conditions with the legal department about potential violations to the WARN Act, it was confirmed by them that there was no legal violation. 

4. Seniority Lists

All Seniority lists for US crew have been updated while we have been in Riga. We noticed some discrepancies in the Purser seniority list, as well as in the master list that affected seniority and the number of crew working in base. These revisions have been made and are available for viewing.

An additional column was added to the master list to indicate which crew are currently working in the IndiGo operation, who is currently being transferred to the UK AOC, and who has been furloughed effective November 1st.

You can find a copy of this list HERE

If you notice any additional discrepancies, please reach out to [email protected] so it can be reviewed.

5. AFA Union Committee Members and Reps

With the furlough of several of our crew members, we will also be losing a significant portion of our Union Committee team.

We have greatly appreciated them volunteering and staying engaged with the work to assist us in making the lives of our crew better here at Norse, and also in keeping us in the loop of situations and concerns to bring to management.

We consulted with AFA International and they let us know that once crew are furloughed, their status as a Union Committee Member/Rep expires.

We sincerely hope that they will reach out to us on return to active duty and volunteer again.

In the interim, those of us who remain will be trying to fill the gaps as best as we can. If any crew members are interested in volunteering to help us during this time, please send an email to [email protected] with a portfolio of interest and your qualifications to be considered.

6. Furloughs

With the November roster release, we begin to notice the absence of our colleagues who will be on furlough for the next few months.

 We encourage all crew members to thoroughly review our CBA and pay specific attention to Article 10 (Leave of Absences) and Article 12 (Furlough and Recall) during this time period to be aware of all company requirements to ensure a safe and stress free return to work.

While on furlough, you are not required to pay union dues, these will be reinstated once you return to active duty here at Norse. Keep in mind that if you take dues out of your paycheck through the company, they are one month behind, and so you may see dues coming out of your November payout.

Finally, as discussed in the Furlough Teams meeting with management, the only travel benefits that will be retained is through ID90 for Norse travel only.

We are sad to lose some of our amazing colleagues but this is not a goodbye, this is a see you soon.

Please do not hesitate to reach out to us at [email protected] if you have any questions, concerns, comments or anything at all.

The union is all of us and we are here to help.

In Solidarity,

Kat & Ted