Capt. Jason Ambrosi, ALPA’s president, welcomes attendees to the Secretary-Treasurers Conference as Capt. Wes Clapper, ALPA’s vice president–finance/treasurer, center, and Capt. Tyler Hawkins, ALPA’s vice president–administration/secretary, right, look on.

If there’s an elected or volunteer position that touches just about every aspect of ALPA, it’s the secretary-treasurer. From meeting planning to membership reports, spending approval to dues reconciliation, purchasing to flight pay loss, the secretary-treasurer handles much of the administrative and financial aspects of a master executive council’s (MEC) work serving its pilots.

With that in mind, more than 30 elected pilot representatives from 20 ALPA pilot groups, plus visitors from Air Canada, met April 19–20 in ALPA’s McLean, Va., offices for the annual Secretary-Treasurers Conference. Attendees holding the position at both the MEC and local executive council (LEC) level heard from national officers, learned from ALPA staff, and networked with each other regarding the duties and responsibilities of the office.

“Serving our union is the highest calling,” said Capt. Jason Ambrosi, ALPA’s president, when welcoming participants to the event. “We’re all working together, so we’re here to find out what you need to serve your pilots.”

Participants ranged from seasoned veterans with years of experience to pilots in their first few weeks in the position—including one whose first day of the conference was his first official day on the job.

The conference was cohosted by Capt. Tyler Hawkins, ALPA’s vice president–administration/secretary, and Capt. Wes Clapper, ALPA’s vice president–finance/treasurer.

Clapper, a former secretary-treasurer at JetBlue, announced to attendees, “You’re my people,” highlighting his experience and his enthusiasm for the position. He thanked them for their service and encouraged them to participate fully, collaborate, and network. “Bring your ideas to share so your colleagues can benefit from them, too,” he commented.

Hawkins informed the pilots that he’d be their first point of contact for most nonfinance issues, encouraging them to e-mail him with any questions. “You serve a very critical function in your MEC and LEC,” Hawkins remarked, “and we all want to see you succeed.”

Throughout the meeting, both Clapper and Hawkins reiterated that attendees could contact them any time they had a question. “If you reach out before, we can likely work something out,” explained Clapper. “But if you guess at something and reach out after, there may not be anything we can do.”

Hawkins noted that the representatives didn’t need to learn everything about the position at the conference, “but you should learn how to find the answers to what you don’t know.”

Clapper added, “The relationships you make here with your neighbors, with staff, and with us, the officers, are going to be very valuable in helping you fulfill the duties of your position.”

Clapper often referred to the “ALPA toolbox of services” accessible to the pilot representatives, including staff expertise available to them any time they need it. He pointed out during a discussion of ALPA’s spending allocation that none of these services are billed directly to the MEC—they’re accounted for in ALPA’s annual budget—and encouraged the officers to use the resources available to them.

Over the course of the two days, Hawkins, Clapper, and staff highlighted the varied financial and administrative responsibilities, such as membership reports, budgeting, dues reconciliation, flight pay loss, organizing meetings, governance, purchasing, spending policies, and more.

Hawkins reviewed meeting responsibilities in detail, including Robert’s Rules of Order, requirements, and processes. He referred to the three governing documents the officers need to abide by—ALPA’s Constitution & By-Laws, ALPA’s Administrative Manual, and their MEC’s administrative manual—as well as directional documents, including ALPA’s strategic plan and their MEC’s strategic plan.

“Know your governing documents and resources,” he encouraged. “They give you the rules of the road.”

Clapper focused on the financial responsibilities of the position, explaining the breakdown of dues dollars within ALPA and providing an update on the work of the Structure, Services, and Finance Review Committee, including policy recommendations to make it easier for local councils to spend their allocated budget and bringing national spending policies up to date.

ALPA staff presented valuable information on how to conduct Association business. One session discussed the use of the Major Contingency Fund and the Operating Contingency Fund, while other sessions reviewed the various reporting duties, such as budget reports, membership reports, and government reports.

During lunch, the pilots were invited to attend hands-on breakout sessions on the various reporting tools available, meet with their staff support, and review specific items of interest.

One of the highlights of the conference was a panel discussion titled “A Day in the Life of an ALPA Secretary-Treasurer,” which included three officers from different MECs: F/O Sean Lee (Hawaiian), MEC secretary-treasurer; Capt. Adrian Sewepegaham (Canadian North), Local Council 222 secretary-treasurer; and Capt. Keith Costo (Delta), MEC treasurer.

Clapper started with a few questions for the panel and then invited attendees to ask their colleagues additional questions. The panelists were chosen from different pilot groups and had a range of experiences in order to provide a wide swath of information.

Lee addressed an issue many pilot groups are seeing as the industry continues to rebound from the pandemic: how to budget for a rapidly growing pilot group. He acknowledged that it’s tough to keep to a budget in such circumstances but reminded pilots that a budget can be adapted to new conditions.

Sewepegaham remarked that his pilot group recently went through a merger and now has three local councils, so “I’ve had to learn the position at a new level and adapt to different rules and duties.”

As a treasurer for a large MEC, Costo offered some important advice, especially for newcomers to the position. “Don’t be afraid to say no—no one likes it, but it’s part of your job.” He suggested using the “crew-room test”: Can you stand in your crew room and justify an expense to anyone who comes in to question you?

Costo also encouraged the officers to ask questions. “I asked a lot of people a lot of questions when I first started,” he said. “Don’t be afraid to reach out.”

Capt. Tim Parker (Morningstar Air Express), his MEC’s secretary-treasurer, was attending his second conference. “I came here this time knowing a bit more,” he commented, “and knowing what I wanted to learn.

“Being able to talk with the other officers and get ideas from them has been extremely valuable,” he continued. “For example, when I go back, I’m going to work on ensuring that our MEC policy manual covers as much as possible so we have our guidance formalized.”

Parker praised the hands-on breakout sessions, noting that they were especially useful for new elected officers. He was also pleased that the overall event included specific content relevant to both U.S. and Canadian pilot groups—as many of the attendees were from pilot groups north of the border.

“The conference directly impacts our job as secretary-treasurer and really shows just how much support is available from the staff,” he remarked.

Capt. Tony Crawford (Endeavor Air), Local Council 125 secretary-treasurer, introduced himself at the beginning of the conference by sharing that it was his first official day in the position and that he was looking forward to learning the ropes from his colleagues. His entire council is new, as the Endeavor MEC recently created a new LEC in Cincinnati, Ohio/north Kentucky due to growth.

“I knew very little coming into this,” Crawford said following the event. “But I learned a vast amount of information at the conference, and it was a great experience. It gave me the opportunity to see how things run from my LEC all the way to ALPA national.”

Crawford commented that the session breaking down the allocation of dues dollars was particularly helpful. “Being able to explain this to others in my council will be a great tool,” he said, adding that learning about the Association’s many resources and meeting the staff support were also valuable.

“My biggest takeaway is to ask questions first, not ask for forgiveness later,” he said. “With all the resources and staff I learned about, I’m sure it will be easy to find timely answers and help.”

During the meeting, Hawkins and Clapper both stressed responsibility and accountability to members. “ALPA is a bottom-up organization,” Hawkins reminded them. “The ones in charge are the members, and everything should flow from them.”

Clapper closed the conference by reiterating to attendees his advice to reach out when they need help. “Your job is extremely important and can be extremely difficult,” he told them. “Use your resources, call me, call Tyler, call the staff, and we can help.”

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