Falconjet,
Why didn't you show up to picket without the hat. Would you have been sent home? Your MEC had an opinion about the image, but any ALPA leader with half a brain knows not to enforce or demand uniform compliance. He'll lose his audience right away. (BTW, informational picketing has worked for over 70 years, why doesn't it work in your opinion?)
First, not sure the FedEx guys have a place on the hat table discussion. I've seen one FedEx hat on a commuter in MEM. FedEx guys really don't need to wear hats. At 3am on the freight ramp, who is concerned? More later.
The blazer is more professional looking however the leather jacket is more practical. Consider it a tie and either choice is accpetable.
I was wondering when hats was going to work it's way into this thread..hijack time?
When the Hat is argued as a uniform piece, it is always done so with the author thinking about himself. How do I look in the hat. Do I like the hat? How does the hat feel on MY head? ME ME ME!
It is not about me. It is about us. It is about our image to the public and what THEY believe! The question is do THEY believe we are worth it? Most people travel on a limited basis. Airports and aircraft can be confusing and intimidating. Give them a reassuring image so they feel good about giving up their MO-NAY!!
Look if you want to argue that ticket prices are so danm cheap and it doesn't matter if we show up in sweats to fly, then what about the future. The future in two ways. 1. If you do wreck a jet do you want to been seen looking sharp or sloppy afterwards? (It doesn't matter if you screw up, just as long as you look good doing it!) 2. If and when this industry turns around, the concern is that we'll have let our image slide and this will hurt us a the negotiating table. ($$$)
Back in the good ol' days, PanAm was adament that it crews would been seen at the best intercontinental hotels and never been seen carrying thier own bags, much less anyone elses. Boy, times have changed. It is all about cost and managment would just assume we stay at the Motel 6 and carry/load bags. But we don't.
Management would just assume have our image dumb downed to blue collar hourly laborers. I'd rather smarten it up to a professional, like a doctor. I think we can realize more pay from management and the public with a professional image.
It is disapointing that so many of us are willing to be a reflection of our current environment. If the passengers don't care, then don't wear a tie. Do we wear the uniform because we are concened the CPO will discipline us? Or do we wear the uniform because we know as professionals, presenting a professional image is...well.....professional. (hint: key word here....)
Give a guy 350K a year and he'll wear any hat. Run him through this current airline environement and hats are lit on fire as they're frisbeed to the nearest trash can. Is that professional?
When it comes to our companies, the gov't and the public all we have is image. Imagine if our image was brought up a few notches? The image was "Man, those airline pilots are disciplined, calm, smart, relaxed, polite, trusted and professional."
Instead we have Air Line Pilots in the terminal, with faded blue cotton dockers, Margariitaville Tshirts shown through white shirts, oakleys with croakies, dirty epaulets, combined with body language that says "who gives a crap" and foul language, etc.... You get the idea.
The hat is a tool to do our jobs via projecting a professional image, that's all. Even I don't like wearing the hat but I think wearing it is greater than my opinion.....
. Perhaps if you are an total ultra purist aviation junkie you'd marry another pilot and BOTH of you would wear your uniforms. One blazer and one leather jacket. YEAH!!
