PHL Reserve F/A's...it's time to ACT!

[N109UW]

I still say that AA has the BEST reserve system of all. We are one-on-one-off for the first 3 years, then you only have to serve reserve 3 times/year until you have enough seniority to be off reserve completely.

Off reserve varies from base to base. For instance at SLT (St. Louis, don't ask), reserve for November only goes to 8 years. In the Summer it went up to 11 years. So, we have people who are only serving reserve one or two months per year. I have almost 5 years, and I only have to serve reserve 3 times/year.

At the more senior bases (DFW, ORD, LAX) reserve may go as high as 20+ years some months, but remember it's still only for a maximum of 3 times per year.

Anytime I feel like complaining about reserve, I only have to read about some of the stuff you guys have to put up with. Makes me realize how lucky I am.

Oh, I meant to mention also that when someone puts a trip out on our drop/trade board (we call it HIBOARD), it's strictly first-come-first-served. No one can restrict who picks up their trip.

I could never see our precious AFA allowing a rotating rsv system. Thant would put some BH's back on rsv. Bh's need to be protected, need to be taken care of. I think some of our union officers need to be taken care of. Maybe we should show them the love they have shown us.

 

[proudf/a]

Let the blockholders scream. We as reserves have been screaming ever since the LTO system was put in place. When TWOP is allowed at least we as reserves can fly on days we are already working. Have we all forgotten that we can still call out of time once we have flown our 80 hrs? Rather than flying for 6 days and sitting on call for 13 days, we could fly our company time in 15 to 18 days. Does anyone remember what it was like to get a 80+ hr. paycheck and still have days off to have a life?

You will fly 60 hrs a month instead of 30 company time. This isn't the answer either. With the current LTO system, it isn't possible to break your guarantee unless you happen to have a boat load of vacation in any given month. If you are in a base such as LGA, occasionally f/a's are able to call out of time. As long as they keep the current system, you will NOT see an 80 hr paycheck w/o ETB time. Reserves need to keep screaming because this company and this union have a history of favoring the lineholders, at the expense of the reserves.

 

[donttouchthebeauty]

I could never see our precious AFA allowing a rotating rsv system. Thant would put some BH's back on rsv. Bh's need to be protected, need to be taken care of. I think some of our union officers need to be taken care of. Maybe we should show them the love they have shown us.

I say go to a rotation, if you have more than five years at UAL - you rotate every other month from reserve to line holder status until you can hold a steady line, however i do agree that AA is better - everyone serves reserve 3 times until you can hold it for good. Let the senior blockholders find out what life really is... They have it way to good over there.

 

[hula-flyguy]

h34r: h34r: h34r: Hula fly guy/girl and you have the hard facts from the LEC soon to be EX of Council 70? The reserves have been abused and when the party line is "you should be Happy to have a Job" the Reserves and all employees should be concerned. If there was ever a shread of sympathy for their lives it never came from LA. Prove me wrong and get back into your mu-mu it covers up your sniper attacks and self preservation. All you care about is yourself get a Title and you really think your somebody.

Not claiming to have the facts. Just pointing out that another board member HAS NONE. So now you are going to add to your LA hate list that she is solely responsible for all that is wrong with the reserve system? Pathetic, yet not surprising.

 

[Twicebaked]

What about Delta? They don't have reserve lines. All flight attendants have a block that contains 3 reserve days a month. Anyone from Delta shed more light if I don't have it completely correct. I am not sure if if cuts off at a high seniority or doesn't start that way until you've been for a few...but that seems like a great system.

As I stated in another thread.. If all trips already had a name on it, 3 days reserve a month, you probably wouldn't be used.

 

[sharktooth]

Not claiming to have the facts. Just pointing out that another board member HAS NONE. So now you are going to add to your LA hate list that she is solely responsible for all that is wrong with the reserve system? Pathetic, yet not surprising.

When a union official, council 70 (thank you, I am corrected) president, _averages_ 160 hours per month pay, you don't think that tends to take away work from potential reserves, making a few BHs into RES?

I'd say your response is pathetic, ignorant and, since ignorance repeated can only be described as stupid, um, stupid.

You don't have the facts, your attitude implies you don't care to have the facts, so, fact off, mr. hula skirt man, or, should I just call you, tutu.

If by hate list you include all the anti-employee actions LA has engendered, let me add a few. I hear new ones every single time I fly. and BTW, I would call the list: Document the Atrocities, and it is a l-o-o-n-n-g list. Each item is not enough to get one fired, but, together, they all add up.

Personally, I think the worst is calling up management and telling them to fire a FA. Another, told to me by a person offended, was, "you have used up your monthly dues, call me next month". She had that on speakerphone and her roommates heard it. It gets better as you go along.

AFA has denied due process, by their own Constitution and Bylaws.

So, what have you heard, tutu?

Disclaimer: She admitted to spreading vile and untrue rumors about me, for which she has yet to apologize. Up until that time, I did not even know who she was, that she was the spawn of a scab. I could have cared less, except...........she chose to make an issue of a made up lie about me.

 

[USstew23]

The AIL needs to go!!

AMEN SISTER Burn the ####!!!!! I'd personally like to wipe my @$$ with that thing and leave it on the doorstep to the crewroom in A-West.

 

[tahitigirl]

You will fly 60 hrs a month instead of 30 company time. This isn't the answer either. With the current LTO system, it isn't possible to break your guarantee unless you happen to have a boat load of vacation in any given month. If you are in a base such as LGA, occasionally f/a's are able to call out of time. As long as they keep the current system, you will NOT see an 80 hr paycheck w/o ETB time. Reserves need to keep screaming because this company and this union have a history of favoring the lineholders, at the expense of the reserves.

I agree with you and something has got to change. But I don't think that reserves should be forced to fly off and vacation days just to make a living wage. I looked into how many hours are going to the ETB. Keep in mind these numbers are for CLT reserves in Oct. and we have already had the 24/7 FAR enforced. As of today Oct. 18th 1524 hrs and 49 mins have been awarded via the ETB. This averages over 84 hrs a day. Why is it our union can't come up with a way to allow ALL f/a to work and still have a life? Or do we all have to wait until we are 80 years old to do so?

 

[Non Rev]

What about Delta? They don't have reserve lines. All flight attendants have a block that contains 3 reserve days a month. Anyone from Delta shed more light if I don't have it completely correct. I am not sure if if cuts off at a high seniority or doesn't start that way until you've been for a few...but that seems like a great system.

As I stated in another thread.. If all trips already had a name on it, 3 days reserve a month, you probably wouldn't be used.

I was at a resort with some Quantas FA's awhile back. They told me Quantas has a rotating reserve system. I do not remember the rotation but every FA is on reserve for a period of time. None of them had any issues with it. Its crazy to be on reserve for years...... Seems to me the system is broken and there are more efficient ways to apply reserve.

 

[jimntx]

When a union official, council 70 (thank you, I am corrected) president, _averages_ 160 hours per month pay, you don't think that tends to take away work from potential reserves, making a few BHs into RES?

This is so wrong on so many levels, it's hard to know where to start. Now, I think anyone who reads this board knows that I am no fan of the officers of the Blessed Order of the Perpetually Trip-Removed (dba APFA), but there is nothing like this at AA.

Union officers are paid a set amount per year--I'm not sure exactly what it is, but it is something like the average annual pay of an International F/A flying 105 hours/month. It's around $100,000/year.

In return, they DO NOT FLY. They work full-time on union business. There is no picking up trips on days off for extra pay (as far as I know ).

Also, I saw something else in this thread IIRC that suggested that someone at US could drop trips from their schedule, keep their guarantee, then pick the same trips back up as extra flying over guarantee? At AA the monthly guarantee for lineholders (I think you call them blockholders) is 70 hours (75 on reserve months). If I hold a 78 hour line, there is 8 hours of incentive pay (paid at a rate a little higher than base). If I drop 10 hours of flying, my guarantee is busted to 68 hours (i.e., guarantee is only hours actually flown). If I pick up 10 hours of flying, my guarantee is restored to 70 hours, and my pay projection is restored to 78 hours (70 hours at base pay, 8 hours of incentive pay).

On reserve months, I can not pick up extra flying from Open Time (trips out in the computer on first-come, first-served basis). On my days off, I can put myself on Make-up which is worked by Scheduling in seniority order. I think I've gotten a trip from Make-up maybe one time in 5 years. I can pick up trips from other f/as from the trade board, but only via what we call Optional Exchange. No matter how many hours I pick up, it is paid at base rate. I get incentive pay on reserve months only for hours over 70 assigned to me by crew scheduling. Also, I can not pick up flying that touches a day I am "good" to the company which might create an illegality.

JMHO, but your reserve system needs to be seriously re-worked.

 

[phlflygirl72]

The problem here is that P.K. in Inflight Admin does not know how to staff the department. He never has. Who's fault do you think the lack of Inflight Staffing in the Dec meltdown was? P.K.

As a PHL Rsv, it makes me so mad that the incompetence of this man is allowed to continue. He can't stand flight attendants, has no compassion towards them and he does not care about the reserve flight attendants way of life. The easy thing to do is not to offer any leaves of abscence for December for the potential problems over Christmas. God forbid he looks at the rest of the month and see the implication of how not offering leaves effects the lives of the reserve flight attendants in PHL. Time to clean house in Inflight Management. Start with P.K.

He has never cared about the flight attendants. He just used them to get ahead and the staffing problems are a result of him not knowing his job.

 

[furloughednow psa]

I/we feel for you. It hasn't been a bed of roses working either. I think at this point the only thing we can look forward to is the integration and HOPE/PRAY that things will get much better then.
I can't see them going with our system as it is too costly.
As I said in a previous post. This system wouldn't be "that bad" if it were only a year of two.

Hang in there!

Thanks for the encourage. I know everybody has been threw hell and I just wish that they would throw a few bones.

 

[Travelpro72]

OK, all these flight attendants are going back on reserve. For me on reserve with my 40ish hours for the month, where are we going with this? This is such utter BULL$h!t that I can hardly stand it. Something has to change NOW. It's just frustrating....who do you vent to? NOTHING seems to make a difference. Call the UNION...HA! Thats a joke. We are gonna be even MORE broke than we are NOW. I just DON'T understand how this is. All these years on reserve. We are the laughing stock of other airlines. Through BK's and still UA and DL make more than us I bet. I don't want them to make the blockholders trip options totally restrictive as I would like those options as well but it seems we are just NEVER going to get there to enjoy it too. This reserve system even for a year or two is WRONG in so many ways. I just don't see this negotiating BS going anywhere. Problems are on the horizon.

 

[phlflygirl72]

OK, all these flight attendants are going back on reserve. For me on reserve with my 40ish hours for the month, where are we going with this? This is such utter BULL$h!t that I can hardly stand it. Something has to change NOW. It's just frustrating....who do you vent to? NOTHING seems to make a difference. Call the UNION...HA! Thats a joke. We are gonna be even MORE broke than we are NOW. I just DON'T understand how this is. All these years on reserve. We are the laughing stock of other airlines. Through BK's and still UA and DL make more than us I bet. I don't want them to make the blockholders trip options totally restrictive as I would like those options as well but it seems we are just NEVER going to get there to enjoy it too. This reserve system even for a year or two is WRONG in so many ways. I just don't see this negotiating BS going anywhere. Problems are on the horizon.

You can start by calling P.K. in Inflight Admin. and demanding to know why they did not offer any monthly leaves of abscences for Dec. How can you offer a hundred or more every other month and then none for Dec? He just wants to cover his A-- and does not care how this will effect the hundred more people that will be on reserve for the month of Dec. Where will P.K. be on Christmas day? Not working I am sure.

 

[Travelpro72]

P.K. will be cozy at home while the rest of us pull the weight on xmas eve and xmas day. TOTAL BS. Even calling inflight admin. HONESTLY, what does that do? This is crap.