From DEAR AFA (November 3, 2006)

Recent Onboard Updates have announced a recycling initiative for the state of Hawaii.  The Onboard Updates speak to "initial segregation" or "separating" certain items for recycling.  For years we have consolidated items, like stacking plastic glasses, separating cans in a bin or collecting newspapers at the end of a flight.  We've done this to conserve space and to assist in different recycling programs throughout the years including those that benefited charities.  At no time have we or should we now start to sort through garbage.  We have always tidied during a flight to contribute to the appearance of the cabin and in an effort to safely maintain the confined area of our workspace.  We have best accomplished this by picking up and separating items with bins, a combination of bins and the trash cart and collecting newspapers with bags.  But we do not clean the aircraft, stick our hands into seatback pockets or sift through trash because it's not safe for us or the passengers in our care.

For our benefit at work and the environment in which we live, we should make a good faith effort to help United comply with these Hawaii state mandates by continuing what we have always done.  But we should be clear that this does not mean the Contractual scope of our job is expanded to include work that we are not safely equipped to perform.

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