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Your contracts and work rules

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AcarsMe

Active member
Joined
Oct 6, 2011
Posts
40
Hello all,
Our contract is still a couple of years away yet from being expired, but since this was our first contract, I think there were a lot of mistakes made that I hope we can fix in the next version. One of the areas that concerns us most is how we currently "junior assign" people to cover sick calls/vacations. Basically our contract reads, that if someone calls out sick, then they will ask for volunteers first based on seniority (higher seniority gets first crack at the overtime).....if no one volunteers, then they go in reverse seniority and force the most eligible junior person to work.
If it's your day off, and you simply don't answer the phone....well, there are no consequences cause they couldn't reach you.....but if you answer the phone whether by intent or not, well they've nailed you to work. Same goes if you happen to physically be at work.

Now I'm not sure if this is standard practice or not, and that's what I'm kind of trying to find out, is if this is standard practice amongst other airlines. Our biggest gripes come from the fact that we are starting to feel like we are "on-call" employees. Many of us have gotten screwed out of doctors appointments, or other plans we had because of this whole junior assignment thing. We almost start to feel like we should never plan to do anything, because we are at the mercy of the company.
Do your contracts all work this way? Do you have certain clauses that offer the employee some protection in these circumstances? I'm sure the answer is most likely "it's just the nature of the business" but I am still curious to see how it works at other places. Keep in mind we are very small, so we don't have dispatchers that are on "relief lines" that I know some of the larger airlines have. Thanks for any feedback you all might be able to provide in this matter.
 
I have heard of places that offer senior most on shift when the call comes in, the oppurtunity. After that there a many different ways it goes, but it is not unusual to JA in reverse order. One thing that some places do have is language that says a JA can only be made with at least 24 hours advance notice.

Another tactic is to try to get double pay for anyone who volunteers.

As far as the phone notification calls go, most people have cell phones that flash the number of the incoming call, so if it is your employer's number that is calling, be weary. I know of many that let calls from those numbers go striaght to voice mail.
 
We are fortunate to have enough people that sign up for sick call coverage that it usually isn't an issue. Typically it's the Christmas Day sick call that requires JA, and yes, it's the junior person that answers their phone or the junior person on shift.
 
You should be able to get other airlines' contracts through your union rep or the next higher union official.
 
Thanks for any feedback you all might be able to provide in this matter.

We have the exact same policy. I for one am NOT a fan of it. We are very much understaffed. Co-workers call in sick to get an unscheduled day off at the expense of their fellow co-workers. To me, I feel that is poor work ethics.

For example, this last week we have experienced unforecasted adverse weather beyond belief in our system. Do you think my co-workers would step up to the plate and face the mess head-on? H3LL NO! They call in sick because they don't want to bother. Since we are in critical operations, do you think we could get anyone to answer their phone. Again, H3LL NO! In fact, since I was in the building, I got pulled out of recurrent ground school to assist. This happened not once but twice and I can't refuse the assignment because I was "drafted". Additionally those of us who worked, had to work with minimal staff making the workload overwhelming.

It's MY opinion that co-workers should be held accountable to their actions. If you call in on a week-end, holiday, or during critical operations you should expect to document your illness!! It's my personal policy NEVER to call in sick unless I can document the illness i.e. Dr's note.

<steps off soap box>

"Friends are angels who lift us to our feet when our wings have trouble remembering how to fly."
 
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.but if you answer the phone whether by intent or not, well they've nailed you to work.
That's a good time to tell them that you had to put down your beer to pick up the phone because you're using the other hand to steer the boat.

It's MY opinion that co-workers should be held accountable to their actions. If you call in on a week-end, holiday, or during critical operations you should expect to document your illness!! It's my personal policy NEVER to call in sick unless I can document the illness i.e. Dr's note.

It's my opinion that the airline should be properly staffed. Why blame your fellow workers for the failures of management?

The last thing I want to do when I'm sick is put down the chicken soup, get out from under the covers on the couch, and drive down to the doctor's office so I can sit there for an hour and a half to have him tell me I should go lie down on the couch. Of course, not a lot of doctor offices open on the weekend, holidays, or during critical weather. Then I would have to go down to the ER and wait several hours because I'm in line behind people who actually need medical attention. But that's just me.
 
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We are fortunate to have enough people that sign up for sick call coverage that it usually isn't an issue. Typically it's the Christmas Day sick call that requires JA, and yes, it's the junior person that answers their phone or the junior person on shift.

not this past xmas, SKC =)

it went to the 1st person signed up
 

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