American Jumpseat

[xjhawk]

American Airline Jumpseat Agreement [toc]
At the MEC meeting in October, your representatives passed a resolution to work with the American Airlines jumpseat chairman to try and gain unlimited jumpseat benefits with American, like we offer their pilots.

The resolution stated if we were unable to achieve reciprocal benefits, we would modify our agreement to allow American pilots only one jumpseat to preserve a fair and reciprocal agreement.

American Airlines has decided not to allow unlimited jumpseats to the Mesaba pilots, and your MEC has decided to act upon the resolution to limit our jumpseat policy to coincide with the American Airlines agreement.

At our last MEC meeting, your MEC passed a resolution directing our jumpseat chairman to work with management to limit the American Airlines pilots to a single jumpseat. The Pinnacle, Colgan, Compass, and AirTran MECs are all considering the same resolution.

We believe 6000 pilots standing together restricting their jumpseats to AA pilots will have a large impact on the American Airlines operation. This impact will encourage them to rethink their position and offer similar jumpseat benefits to what all five of our airlines offer them today.

We will keep you informed when the changes take effect. Please note this change will restrict ONLY American Airlines, NOT the pilots of American Eagle.


I had no idea the American MEC thought so highly of themselves. Why would they not give what they are getting? But then again I had an American 777 Captain in Spokane try to steal my Jump seat by talking his friend (the gate agent) into refusing to let me have it. I had some nice threatening words promising to get her fired unless I got the jump seat. I was hoping that one idiot was not a representation of all AA pilots........

 

[islandhoper]

AirTran has been in talks with the AA pilots for a long time. We have requested unlimited as well as international agreements with no succes.It is my understanding , however, that it is management that holds the jumpseats hostage and not the pilots.
Unfortunately management has to sign off on any agreement and they use this during the "forever" ongoing contract negotiations as leverage... This info came from our jumpseat coordinator. If true, noone can really ask AA pilots to give up anything just so they can go get laid in southamerica (or commute to work of course)...

 

[xjhawk]

okay, I will cut them some slack. Negotiations are tough-except that one guy from Spokane

 

[CMonBoard]

Most pilots at AA are unaware of the policy. I gave an AA guy a ride a few months back and told him about their limited jumpseat policy with several airlines and he didn't know anything about it.

The only way it will change is if the AA pilots get involved or the AA operation is affected by the inability of people to get to work. I had heard that an airline was able to limit their jumpseats and within a week it was fixed.

 

[AA717driver]

You guys don't understand. APA doesn't control (or, for that matter, have ANY influence on) jumpseat policy at AMR. We rely on the benevolence of AMR for our jumpseat policy.

Please do not direct your ire at the AA pilots (there's plenty of other issues to save that for... ) over the single jumpseat issue.

And, you're right, most AA pilots live in a bubble. It's changing but, for the longest time, most AA pilots lived in base and traveled exclusively on AA.

The AA pilots are changing. I don't not EVER expect AMR management to change so do what you have to do WRT the jumpseat issue.

TC

 

[critterair2]

then next time a guy is at the gate go give him a buddy pass.....otherwise, why do you leave people at the gate and then beg that we don't do the same.

 

[Chairman]

If every carrier banded together and gave 60 day notice that every carrier would do the same and they got worried about there pilots getting to work or them canceling flights this would get resolved. Just like trying to list for there jumpseat between the hours of 8am-2pm Central time monday through friday as the gate agents will not list you.

 

[aa73]

What TC (AA717driver) said - we are trying our best, but the company is not budging right now. And they own the jumpseat, not us. We hope to get it fixed in our next contract.

 

[AA717driver]

AMR tries to make it as difficult as possible for offline to jumpseat.

He!!, they make it difficult on us, too! They have bred a culture of animosity between the employees that may never change.

It is a toxic environment.

TC

 

[get2flyin]

What TC (AA717driver) said - we are trying our best, but the company is not budging right now. And they own the jumpseat, not us. We hope to get it fixed in our next contract.

Well I'm sure management will understand when pilots can't make it to work because the jumpseat wasn't available even though the rest of the plane was wide open.

 

[aa73]

Well I'm sure management will understand when pilots can't make it to work because the jumpseat wasn't available even though the rest of the plane was wide open.

As will yours, too, when the domino effect of denying j/s goes both ways. Trust me, friend, this is not the way to go about it. Everyone loses.

 

[critterair2]

Excuses only satisfy the one who makes them

 

[AA717driver]

As will yours, too, when the domino effect of denying j/s goes both ways. Trust me, friend, this is not the way to go about it. Everyone loses.

aa73--I understand your comment and it would be valid IF we weren't fighting AMR for the jumpseat.

I totally understand why the other carriers are upset with our system--they negotiated to gain access to empty cabin seats and don't understand why we can't do the same.

Many other airlines have aggressively anti-pilot management. AMR takes it to a whole 'nother level. I'd like to think JH will change the tone and the practice WRT jumpseats. I REALLY hope it happens. Until then, we're stuck with our current arrangement and are at the mercy of other carrier's response to that policy.

TC

 

[get2flyin]

As will yours, too, when the domino effect of denying j/s goes both ways. Trust me, friend, this is not the way to go about it. Everyone loses.

I two and three leg commuted for about 7 years and there wasn't a day of it that didn't suck. Having done so, I bend over backwards to accommodate commuters and am very happy to now work for an airline that was one of the first to allow as many jumpseaters as there were open seats. With that said...

AA created a reciprocal agreement with UAL to allow unlimited jumpseating, even though they didn't bother to extend that agreement with other airlines that already were offering them the same deal. My question to you is, what did YOU do about that? How many of your peers have written letters to the Director of Operations? How hard has APA publicly pushed the issue? Yes, everyone loses when the jumpseat is used to make a political statement, but guys from MY company lose because as AA717 says, "we're stuck with our current arrangement". What possible reason does your company have to change it?

I'm in NO WAY saying I wouldn't take a plane load of AA pilots today, tomorrow, and forever regardless of how you answer the question, but the "geez I'd love to help but my management is stingy about that" doesn't help OAL guys get to work.

*AA, if this sounds personal, it's not. I just think it's kind of a raw deal for OAL guys.

 

[aa73]

I know why everyone's ticked off, and join the club - we all are, none more so than the AA pilots who want it changed. I'm just saying that the way you guys are thinking about is the very worst way. Please be patient - it will get worked out in the next contract.

 

[Cobraair75drvr]

aa73,

What APA should do is publicly relay to all other pilot groups nationwide to do the same. No unlimited AA jumpseaters. When AA is forced to cancel flights this will change asap. This should not be something your neg. comm. should have to worry about, nor negotiate for. Let other pilot groups do the work for you.

 

[aa73]

Thanks cobra I will pass that on to our j/s committee.

 

[Flying-Corporal]

Yes, everyone loses when the jumpseat is used to make a political statement, but guys from MY company lose because as AA717 says, "we're stuck with our current arrangement". What possible reason does your company have to change it?

I'm in NO WAY saying I wouldn't take a plane load of AA pilots today, tomorrow, and forever regardless of how you answer the question, but the "geez I'd love to help but my management is stingy about that" doesn't help OAL guys get to work.

*AA, if this sounds personal, it's not. I just think it's kind of a raw deal for OAL guys.

I agree with get2flying. It sucked when the gate agent one day refused to list on an empty flight because there was already one jumpseater who had showed up before me.

Jumpseat is a reciprocal courtesy. How is that reciprocal when sometimes 3-4 AA pilots commute on us and when in similar circumstances they refuse to take more than 2???

I think we should change our computers so that only one of them could be listed. That's not vengeance, that's just fairness.

 

[SSDD]

Sometimes you have to cause a little pain for the greater good. A similar thing was happening at DL a few years back. They could sit in the actual jumpseat on our flights, but us lowly regianal pilots were being left at the gate. It was always the same excuse..."I'd like to take you, but the company...". So a group of senior pilots got together and said no mas.

We didn't weasel out of it. We explained to everone who got denied, why they were being denied. They didn't like it, of course, but they went to their MEC, and the MEC went to the company, and guess what? It took less than two weeks to fix the problem!

 

[SSDD]

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