July 1, 2014

Testimony Offered Before the Port of Seattle Commission
Joe Sprague, Alaska Airlines

Commissioners Albro, Bowman, Bryant, Creighton, and Gregoire: it is my
pleasure to be here today to submit testimony on the Draft Port of Seattle
Resolution dated June 24, 2014 My name isJoe Sprague and I serve as the
Senior Vice President for Communications and External Relations at Alaska
Airlines.

At Alaska, We fully support a comprehensive, thoUghtful and fact-based approach
to compensating our employees and vendor employees, and we appreciate that
the Port Commission has reached a careful judgment about the mandated wage
'
and compensation levels at SeaTac. Our objective is to be supportive of your
efforts in this area while working with you to address provisions that have the
potential for unintended and/or negative consequences. We believe changes in
the Draft Resolution are necessary in order to not hamper business activities at
the airport as well as to support the Port's longer term vision related to its
'
Century Agenda. .

People arecritical to the success of any business and are central to the success
of Alaska Airlines and all our operations at SeaTac. Compensating employees is
a complexdlscussion that should consider both wage adjustment as well as long
term investment in jobtraining programs. We need to strike a balance between
these important goals that will enable sustainable and meaningful success.

To work towards the best possible outcome for all stakeholders, Alaska Airlines
proposes three enhancements to the Draft Resolution, which are fleshed out in
greater detail in a letter I submitted to the Commission on June 27, 2014.

First, we propose that airline employees be exempt from coverage. by the
Draft Resolution. The Airline Deregulation Act ofi 978 prevents local
governments from regulating the prices, routes and services of air carriers The
airline industry believes this provision also applies to regulating labor conditions
of airlineemployees. As such, the terms of these employees' compensation
should not fall under the Ports jurisdiction.

Second, we recommend that the Draft Resolution be amended to recognize
the difference between employees working in the ramp environment and
those. who work inside the terminal. Wheel chair attendants and skycap
employees receive additional compensation in tips and are not subjected to the
heightened safety concerns that employees on or near the, aircraft confront every
day. Given this, a wage rate differential recognizing thevdifferent roles of various
airport work groups is still consistent with the Port's focus on safety and security.
,,,_ 
"Viv,

And lastly, we propose changes to the total compensation provision of the
Draft Resolution, to encourage employers to provide employee benefits
that improve health, quality of life, standard of living and access to future
career opportunities. We acknowledge the challenges in arriving at language
that benefits both employees and the companies that create jobs in our
communities. But we are committed to developing a solid total compensation
provision, and I invite you to refer to my letter of June 27 where i offer a
proposed solution thatIs fair to employees while ensuring employers offering
quality jobs with meaningful benefits.

Alaska Airlines fully supports the Commission's focus on the complexIssue of
minimum wage rates and total compensation This has been and will continue
to be a key area of emphasis for Alaska. We believe an important step was
taken with the recent hourly rate increase we provided for our vendor employees
at SeaTac as well as our tangible commitment to job training and career
development for SeaTac workers. Alaska's focus on enhanced wages and
meaningful career progression opportunities aligns well with the Port
Commission's goals. This commitment is important to us both as a business and
for allowing me to
as a longstanding member of our community. Thank you
testify today.