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Committee Update
Pat Williams Harter has agreed to take on the tremendous task as the PHL Domestic Safety Chairperson, Pat, is without a doubt one of the most knowledgeable and talented FA's in our ENTIRE industry in the field of Safety and I hope the PHL FA's know how blessed we have been all these years to have her looking out for our well being.
Julie Turner is often the person we call as our 'ace in the hole, back-up' to come in and answer the phones when everyone else is off attending meetings, out sick or on vacation. However, I can no longer selfishly keep Julie's gifts limited to the office so I have asked her join our Legislative Affairs Committee and she has agreed. As I write this, Julie is in Washington DC participating in a joint labor legislative meeting which will include lobbying on "The Hill."
This Management's new aggressive approach to levying discipline on our work group has resulted in a significant increased demand for AFA representation at FA-Supervisor meetings. We are presently looking for one or two additional volunteers to help out with FA-Supervisor meetings. If you have a good work record, have an excellent working knowledge of our contract, can keep confidentiality and are willing to spend the time necessary as an AFA Representative to research and then follow up on a FA case please give the local office a call, ask for either Mariellen or John.
I am going to ask all of you for your help. I know you are disgruntled but please do not take what this management is doing to all of the US Airways employees out on your fellow FA's who volunteer their time in your local office. These volunteers, many who have been approached by, but have turned down opportunities to work for Management either as office staff or Supervisors, give freely of their time because they want things to be better for us, the US Airways FA's. Because they, as flight attendants, are faced with all the same problems you are faced with they understand and feel your frustration and are therefore willing to be a 'sounding board' for when you become annoyed with all the silly yet expensive new policies. However, please know that there are many days when they get the 'heat' from both management and the FA's and like any human being, they can take just so much before they will start to burn out. I believe this management would like nothing better than for you to take out your frustrations on each other rather than focus it where it belongs. Please do not allow them to make us their 'scapegoat' for their ineptness or lack of vision.
Please whenever you can use your Contract as a reference and starting point when seeking an answer to contractual questions. For issues that are controlled by Management such as payroll,
FMLA/PCL, LTD, etc., please contact your In-flight Supervisor
unless you believe your contract has been broken in which case call the local office ASAP. Thanks so much for your continued support and for helping us out during these trying times.
Okay, get comfy as this is going to be a little long with a lot of information for you to digest. Let's get started!
ALERT 1: Management Accelerates Discipline
The Dependability Control Program (DCP); what is it and how does it work?
The Process:
In the past, a FA would be counseled for each new infraction and the premise of the program was to get a FA back on the right track. We are now finding that under present management FA's are now being aggressively progressed through the different DCP levels regardless if their initial counseling covered the perceived infraction or not and this management's
new premise seems to be more about 'cutting heads' (management's terminology, not mine) than it is about helping an employee work through difficulties or to correct their dependability.
Levels:
There are several levels/steps in the program, they include: A Supervisor Counseling(s); Level I; Level II; Final and then Termination.
FYI: A Supervisor must clearly explain the Dependability Control Program to you BEFORE putting you on it.
Once on a level the FA remains there for a year. If within that year the FA is progressed to a higher level their year starts over at the time of the progression.
What You Need to Know:
What was once called "In-flight" is now called "Operational". It's not just the named that has changed.
Due to all the cuts and furloughs, every flight attendant currently active on this property has at least five years of seniority. We all have a history with this Company, and know how things are "supposed to be done." Under current management, the rules as we know them are constantly changing and
never in a good way. In the past, we had become accustomed to In-flight Supervisors and Managers who had latitude in addressing flight attendant issues. In the past, AFA was able to work with In-flight Supervisors to ensure that the Company's dependability concerns were addressed while at the same time getting them to acknowledge improvements and corrections made by the FA. Many times, movement forward in the DCP was avoided when the Supervisor had the discretion to recognize a FA's correction of a past problem while counseling on a new issue. Today, these 'Operational Supervisors' DO NOT seem to have any discretion when dealing with flight attendants issues. Under the direction of CCY (Crystal City/Upper Management) Supervisor teams are making
accelerated and aggressive use of the DCP. Once a FA has been placed/caught in the program, he/she is likely to be rapidly moved up a level for each subsequent perceived infraction.
Up until recently, management looked upon longtime service and loyalty to our Company favorably. Today, it appears as if management no longer values years of loyalty and service. In the current corporate environment it is risky to attend meetings with management alone. Remember that you are entitled to AFA representation any time you meet with a member of management.
Also remember that management must give you and your Union Rep a reasonable amount of time to prepare for a meeting. In addition, you not only have the RIGHT to Union representation you also have the RIGHT to read
any letters or complaints written about you PRIOR to meeting with your Supervisor.
Note: Beware, everyone is now a target and anyone can find him/herself caught between the 'cross-hairs' for the smallest slip-up. The only things we have to protect us from management's newest Draconian policies are;
- union representation
- our contract
- our contractual grievance process
- and most importantly each other
(I want to personally thank all the PHL/PHW FA's who have taken the time to relay changes they have observed out on the line. There have been more than a handful of times where we were able to stop some new grievous act by this management just because someone took the time to call or write the local and give us a 'heads-up!)
Note: Do not fall prey to management's divisive tactic of constantly ridiculing the FA group. The vast majority of FA's are consummate professionals.
Note: Please do not allow yourself to be used as a 'Management Mole,' if you have a personal problem or concern with another FA; try to talk it out with them first. If that does not work out please call one of your Local AFA Professional Standards Reps:
Candace Ackerman @ 267-250-4459 or John Ciervo @ 267-303-9360.
Note: If you receive notification of a meeting, protect yourself from additional discipline by responding to the Supervisor ASAP, let them know you are in receipt of their request. Keep a record of ALL your calls and correspondences. Under the new 'Supervisor Team System', it is not uncommon for messages left for this weeks Dependability Supervisor to fail to find it's way to next weeks Dependability Supervisor.
Note: Generally speaking as FA's we all like to talk, sometimes maybe a little too much. Here in the local office, we are frequently called 'after' a FA has already met on their own with their Supervisor. The FA is often shocked when they find themselves on dependability after their meeting and wants us to 'fix' what has already happened. Many times we are able to do just that but please, please 'Help Us Help You' by never forgetting that you are speaking with a "Supervisor" and that not all Supervisors' are your "buddy." Answer the questions honestly but please stay on point/topic you need only address the issue or infraction you were called in for.
ALERT 2: Management Targets Sick
The Company announced a change in the sick policy in December 2003; these changes were NOT shared or discussed with AFA before Management arbitrarily put them into practice.
What you need to know now is that we are finding that Flight Attendant sick calls are being scrutinized, and we are all being called to task when calling in sick. Dependability and Operational Conduct discipline is being levied in cases where a flight attendant is now deemed to have called in "late sick," "sick on assignment" or "sick on contact." These new terms basically mean that in addition to moving forward in the DCP, the flight attendant who is "sick on assignment," "sick on contact" or "late sick" (calls off less than 2 hours before check-in, or calls off sick at/after the time they are contacted by scheduling) are now being given a Letter of Warning which
presently states that any future such infraction may result in Termination. What does that mean for those of us who are ill or injured? It means that we must be proactive in our communication with Crew Scheduling. If you are too sick to fly or are injured and cannot perform flight attendant duties, try to call scheduling
BEFORE they call you.
Note: If you have Catcrew at home you can monitor how close scheduling may be to calling you by accessing: Screen/Options; 11- open trips; 16 - Line Holder AIL or 18 - Reserve LTO list.
As always, make note of the date, time and scheduler that you speak with so that tapes can be pulled if needed.
Note: Remember that our contract clearly states that if for any reason, the tape is erased, missing or inaudible, and the missing information cannot be substantiated,
then the affected flight attendant shall receive the benefit of the
doubt. Conversations are taped for your protection but can also be used against you so please, please conduct all calls to scheduling in a professional manner, keep it short and to the point. Remember that a scheduler is not your supervisor, he/she should
not be asking you about your personal life or why you may be calling off sick. The only thing the scheduler needs to know is that you are sick, that you will no be taking your trip and that you will be in touch with your In-Flight/Operational Supervisor 'if' need be.
Once out sick if you find that your sick call needs to be extended, the only thing you need to let a scheduler know is that you are "STILL SICK" make sure you clearly communicate that point on tape and then make sure you write down the date, time and scheduler's name.
To have a tape pulled just call your local AFA office with the time, date and schedulers name associated with the call.
Reserves: This is a little different for you, please read Section 8.A.2 of the 2000 FA contract. In order to avoid having to call in sick on a daily basis, you can advise Scheduling of the 'duration' of your sick call. Remember, that it is
assumed that you will be available at the end of the aforementioned period or adjoining days off, if any, unless you call Scheduling and notify them to the contrary. A reserve who expects to be on sick leave for an
unknown duration will be required to advise Scheduling of his/her status prior to the commencement of each period of available-for-duty days (days on).
AFA has grieved the Company's policy of placing any flight attendant who is out 14 days or more in a month (inclusive of OFF/INV and VAC) and who has a sick call during that 14 days on an involuntary medical leave - and the related requirement of a Dr.'s note upon return. The Arbitrator has heard that case, and a decision is pending. Until the decision is handed down, we must provide the Dr. note. If the Company requests more information from your doctor, go see him/her again, BUT be sure to bill the Company for this extra visit (see: §8.H). Send the bill to (1) your supervisor, and (2) Labor Relations; then keep a copy for your records.
Note: When counting the 14-days management uses 'calendar days.'
ALERT 3 Excessive Sick (6th and subsequent sick calls)
Again on this issue of sick calls: Our contract states that the Company may request a doctor's note for "… any sick occurrence in excess of five (5) occurrences during any continuous active twelve month period." You should receive a warning letter at the time of your 5th sick call letting you know that any
additional sick calls (6 or more) in the rolling calendar year will be viewed as excessive.
Company policy is that a note IS REQUIRED at the 6th sick call, and any subsequent sick call(s). A doctor's note DOES NOT EXCUSE the absence, it merely documents that the flight attendant was in fact ill or injured during the period of time covered by the sick call. The Company considers any sick call in excess of five (5) during a 12-month period to be excessive, and
is now imposing discipline for sick calls that exceed Five (5) in number.
When faxing a note to In-flight Services, remember to always call to confirm that your information was received. Keep a copy of your fax confirmation for your records and your protection.
FYI: FMLA (Family Medical Leave) is a Federal Law. PCL (Personal Care Leave) is a negotiated contractual right that 'mirrors' FMLA. Both are for a total of 12-weeks in a year. The 12-weeks does not have to be taken all at one time but can instead be used intermittently (If on PCL you must be out for 5 or more days for it to count). Both FMLA and PCL can be used for personal or family reasons. The reason PCL was negotiated was because most of our Flight Attendants do not meet the required 1250 work hours in a year to qualify for the Federal FMLA. Under the negotiated PCL, a FA only needs 450 work hours in the previous 12-months to qualify.
There are two ways to look at FMLA/PCL, here is what you need to know/consider:
1. If you are moving towards 'excessive sick' and believe your sick call is covered by the FMLA/PCL, you may want to request an FMLA/PCL application from your supervisor team to fill out and submit. Once on FMLA/PCL
any sick occurrences related to the FMLA/PCL will
NOT be counted towards your sick calls! As you can see in the case of a FA who is close to excessive sick and dependability this would be very helpful.
2. On the flip-side, if you have no sick calls and are not in danger of being put on dependability you might want to save your FMLA/PCL for an unknown family emergency.
Presently management is pressing FA's who are out sick for 14-days or more to fill out the FMLA/PCL paperwork. This of course would eat up your FMLA/PCL while out sick or on medical.
Although FMLA law states that the Company has the right to run your FMLA concurrent with a sick call or medical
leave, please remember that you are NOT required to fill out the paperwork unless YOU are personally making the request for FMLA/PCL.
Example: A FA needs an operation that will put her/him out of commission and off the line for 12-weeks. Let's say that this FA has zero sick calls and no dependability infractions. Let's also say that the FA has an aging parent. The FA may not want to use up her/his FMLA/PCL to protect the single sick call because they would prefer to save their FMLA/PCL in the event their parent's health was to decline.
Under Federal Law, the Company can elect to run the FMLA/PCL simultaneously with the sick/medical regardless if the FA wants it or not, which is exactly what this management is doing. However, if the FA submits to management's pressure and fills out the request forms when they do not wish to use it, we probably would not have a leg to stand on if the FA later finds that they need their FMLA/PCL to care for their sick parent. No guarantees, but if the FA had not personally filled out the paperwork, we may, repeat 'may' be able to put a case together to get them the time they will need to take care of their parent.
ALERT 4: No-Sign-In (NSI)
Your Local Council Office has noticed an increase in the number of flight attendants being charged with a No Sign In (NSI). Although our contract states, "Once a flight attendant has called for his/her line award, he/she shall be automatically signed in for the month," we know that this does not always happen. Technology - especially the Company's - is not perfect. Protect yourself from a NSI by confirming that your monthly sign-in is recorded either by checking in CATCREW or speaking with Crew Scheduling - always record the date, time and name of scheduler so that tapes can be pulled if needed.
FYI: Line Holders Beware! If you sign in prior to SAP and are subsequently awarded a SAP trip you will need to go back and sign in again for the SAP trips. If you fail to do so you are at great risk of receiving a NSI.
ALERT 5: Illegal Trip Improving
Although this was NOT the case in the past, In-flight (Operational) management is now holding flight attendants accountable under the DCP for illegal trip improvement. PHL In-flight Services and your 'Operational' Supervisors are
closely monitoring flight attendant use of the AIL and line holder flight attendants found illegally trip improving are being moved forward in the DCP. AFA believes this is a gross departure from past practice.
What is illegal trip improving?
Remember, we are still required to "touch" our block trip(s) when trip improving. If the AIL is not restricted, the first day need not be "touched," but one of the remaining days of the original trip
must be touched unless it is impossible to do so (no trips available for any of the remaining days of the original dropped line trip).
Exception: If the bid sheet is not restricted, and a one-day trip is dropped, because there are no other days to "touch," the only requirement is that the lost time be flown at some other time during the month.
ALERT 6: Liquor Money & Other Sales Deposits
The Company has been performing a system-wide audit of In-flight Sales deposits. It is more important now than ever before that flight attendants keep their pink liquor receipts.
On ALL aircraft there is one AB-1 form and envelope filled out for the front and another filled out for the back. On ALL aircraft the "A" FA is responsible for turning in both sets of AB-1 forms.
On all aircraft, with the exception of the B757, 767 & A330 the "A" FA is also responsible for having their name on both back and front AB-1 forms as well as keeping the pink receipt for 90-days. On the B757, B767 & A330, the "B" FA will be responsible for having their name on the AB-1 form for the back end only and will therefore keep and be responsible for producing, if requested, the "Pink Copy" for the back.
In other words, one of the things the computer and Management will be looking for on the B757, B767 & A330 is TWO different names on the AB-1 forms. If you are flying "A" on the B757, B767 or A330 please make sure that before you turn in the envelopes at the end of the trip that you have double checked to make sure that the "B's" name (not yours) appears on the AB-1 forms for the backend.
Remember that it is important that you keep the pink receipt from the envelope that contains the actual deposit (as opposed to writing-up a "clean" or legible copy for yourself on another form). Each envelope contains a tracking number - it is that number on your pink receipt that is used to track the deposit envelope once it is turned back in to the Company.
ALERT 7: Blue Boxing
Management has contacted me asking if I would please put something out about "Blue Boxing." It seems many of our line holders are getting in trouble because they do not understand how it works. So here is some basic info on "Blue Boxing."
Contract provisions detailing the process of the daily Availability/Improvement List clearly outline the flexibility US Airways F/A's enjoy in their flying schedules. Section 10 also describes an F/A's responsibilities when using these provisions.
Crew Scheduling, in their efforts to keep track of each F/A's AIL activity, developed a system to monitor whether an F/A properly uses the bid sheet and fulfills his/her obligations. This system is known as "blue boxing". There is nothing special about the color blue, which was chosen to highlight an F/A's block trip. The blue box merely provides a visual aid to the crew scheduler indicating which days an F/A is required to touch. Any F/A who uses the AIL provisions should be aware of how the blue-box process works
Example: A flight attendant has a four-day block trip 22005 that originates on the 25th. The F/A goes on the AIL and is awarded a three-day trip originating on the 22nd. The AIL trip makes the F/A illegal to originate his/her original block trip. However, as long as the F/A is legal to originate some/any other trip on the 25th (i.e. does not exceed 30/35 in 7, receives required 24:00 hours rest in 7 days, etc.), crew scheduling will approve the three-day trip for the 22nd. When crew scheduling awards the trip for the 22nd, they will remove Trip 22005 on the 25th and "blue-box" it.
Scheduling has the responsibility to advise the FA that their trip on the 25th has been removed. If on the 25th the bid sheet is restricted, the F/A is responsible to originate another trip on that day. If the bid sheet is not restricted, then the F/A may choose to touch one of the other days of the "blue-boxed" trip. Additionally, if the F/A is not legal to originate any trip on the 25th, crew scheduling should not allow the FA to pick up a trip that will make them illegal to touch a required day.
Phone Numbers you need to know and use:
PHL INFLIGHT SERVICES
Dave Chapla, Operational Manager 610-362-7917
John Kolesar, Domestic Manager 610-362-7911
Michelle Green, Office Administrator 610-362-7281
Crew Service Center 610-362-4100
TEAM A
Peter Pellegrino 610-362-7920
Stevie Lauterjung 610-362-7078
Sue Stevens 610-362-7916
TEAM B
Kim Alston 610-362-7915
Marilyn Ludd 610-362-7914
Abby Gregory 610-362-7918
Scott Clapper 610-362-7919
TEAM C
Sonny Levitt 610-362-1986
Ashlyn Kosma 610-362-1698
Chris Dillon 610-362-1697
FAX
Inflight (Terminal B) 610-362-7921
Inflight (Terminal A-West) 610-362-1701
Crew Service Center 610-362-4599
Inflight Administration-PHL 610-362-4105
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As always I leave you with a couple of quotes to ponder starting with one of my all time favorites:
We must, indeed, all hang together or, most assuredly, we shall all hang separately.
Benjamin Franklin (1706-1790)
The ballot is stronger than the bullet
Abraham Lincoln (1809-1865)
Because I know how much they enjoy reading the PHL/PHW News Line, I of course had to include one for our 'friends' in management to mull over:
Necessity is the plea for every infringement of human freedom. It is the argument of tyrants;
William Pitt, 1783, 1856
Congratulations you made it to the end of Part I!
LOOK For PART #2
in the NEXT NewsLine 70
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