There are two items that need to be discussed today; one affects your pay and the other your quality of life. Both are contractual issues.

ACARS PROBLEM:

I have noticed recently that ACARS on certain Boeing 767 and 75E aircraft are not recognizing the ‘A’ and ‘B’ designators for senior and aft/lead pay purposes. Keep in mind that these aircraft also fly non-transoceanic segments.

Take a look at the following flight displays (option #3 in CATCREW)

EXAMPLE 1:

EXAMPLE 2:

Can you find any differences between Example 1 and Example 2?

This flight left at 2116, 26 minutes late and arrived at 0502, 1+37 late. There’s certainly nothing uncommon about that these days. However, do you notice anything else?

Here’s the difference: In Example 1, whoever worked A and B will not be paid their ‘senior’ and ‘aft/lead’ premiums.

In Example 2, you will see the ‘A’ designation beside F/A Jen Lindley. You will see the ‘B’ designation beside F/A Pacey Witter. They will be paid the premium for working those positions.

What happened? The ACARS in Example 1 was not capturing the ‘A’ and ‘B’ designations. I’ve caught this on several flights over the past few days and I’ve notified the crews. However, you may want to start verifying that you are being paid for working these positions by checking option 3 after each flight/trip. If you worked a position that was eligible for senior, aft-lead or galley pay (A330 only) and the A, B or E designation does not appear to the left of your employee number in option 3, call claims and alert them of the problem. They can adjust it immediately and you will be paid. I have not seen this problem with the A330 but it wouldn’t hurt to check. PLEASE REMEMBER that you MAY BE on one of these aircraft on a domestic flight (i.e. PHL-CLT; PHL-FLL, etc.)

Also, there have been and will continue to be instances in which the F/O inputs the wrong employee for these positions. Perhaps he/she mistakenly looked at the trip sheet and not the cabin pay sheet or forgot to ask "who’s working what position?" Again, if you find the discrepancy, call claims.

LAST LIVE LEG:

Section 9-24 of your contract states:

A flight attendant may fly another flight attendant’s last live leg for him/her provided all parties adhere to the following:

There are three conditions regarding this issue and NOWHERE does it mention that you can be denied this because "scheduling is too busy to work the swap."

We received two separate reports of this happening on Monday in which flight attendants were willing to work the last leg for their co-workers but were denied by scheduling because scheduling told them "we’re too busy." I have notified the manager of crew scheduling that this is not acceptable and that this is a contractual issue and MUST be adhered to. It can mean the difference in being home in one hour vs. several hours or even the next day.

If you are attempting to work for someone and are told by scheduling that they are "too busy," ask to speak to the duty manager and explain that this is a contractual issue and they must allow you to do this.


Regards,