PHX Mtx to go 5 & 2

[Warchant]

Speaking with a couple of key people today, management discussed the 5/2 at the afternoon meeting. It's not going to happen (at least this year).

What is going to happen will involve the sups. The sups which are on a 4/4 are going to a set 4/3, just like the techs. They say this will happen the first of the year (yeah, right) due to vacation bids/tracks already filled out and approved.

Will see which happens first, the sups changing or our TA!

 

[justaumechanic]

I think you misunderstand what he said.

The 2 1/2 day work week.. You work two doubles (16.5) and then one 8 hour day.. That's it..

Plenty of guys working Mon,Tue,Wed with Thru, Fri, Sat, Sun off.. Pretty good deal if you can handle the back to back 16.5 day.

So the East has the same deal as WN. Do I understand correctly that you work two doubles (16hrs) and then come in for 4 more and are off the rest of the week?

 

[fanlube]

Do all shifts work 4 tens or just midnite. Frank S is the master at bubba deals so if you guys want to stay with the 4 tens than you need to hammer him with phone calls and face to face meetings to let him know! As AP Tech stated the IAM is always making station agreements don't let them tell you it can't be done! Like was stated before most guys on East like the swaps so the 8 1/2 hour day works better for us but their is no reason it should change for you guys!

 

[midnightmech]

OVERTIME? what the heck is that.....East- at least the ones I talk too- WANT the 4/3 schedule. 5/2 works for swaps but a lot of people are now TOO OLD to work 16.5 hr days, especially back to back ones!3rd shift is otq for most working day/swings,at least in the line stations...We are being told that the wonderful WORKBRAIN will not allow the change to 4/3 on the East ....'aint life grand!

 

[allstrike]

Oh ya workbrain........lol. The west thinks they have problems now.Hey you guys wait till you meet this thing.

:down:

 

[EricLv2Fish]

OVERTIME? what the heck is that.....East- at least the ones I talk too- WANT the 4/3 schedule. 5/2 works for swaps but a lot of people are now TOO OLD to work 16.5 hr days

Personally working a 16 hour day is asking for disaster. It's hard to believe that the Union, Company or even the FAA would allow anyone performing maintenance on an aircraft to exceed even 12 hours. The risk to personal safety and the safety of passengers can not be taken lightly. It's kinda like drinking alcohol. The more your drink the less common sense you have. The more you work past a certain threshold the less alert and the more prone to mistakes you become. I certainely wouldn't want to fly on an aircraft where a mechanic fixing the aircraft just finished a 16 hour day. It's just not reasonable to think a 16 hour day is just another day at work.

 

[awausairtech]

Oh ya workbrain........lol. The west thinks they have problems now.Hey you guys wait till you meet this thing.

:down:

WE have workbrain in the west and work 4/10's

 

[700UW]

Personally working a 16 hour day is asking for disaster. It's hard to believe that the Union, Company or even the FAA would allow anyone performing maintenance on an aircraft to exceed even 12 hours. The risk to personal safety and the safety of passengers can not be taken lightly. It's kinda like drinking alcohol. The more your drink the less common sense you have. The more you work past a certain threshold the less alert and the more prone to mistakes you become. I certainely wouldn't want to fly on an aircraft where a mechanic fixing the aircraft just finished a 16 hour day. It's just not reasonable to think a 16 hour day is just another day at work.

No mechanic would sign anything off unless he fixed it properly.

But you would gladly fly on a plane with pilots and fas who have on duty for 12 or more hours?

 

[allstrike]

No mechanic would sign anything off unless he fixed it properly.

But you would gladly fly on a plane with pilots and fas who have on duty for 12 or more hours?

Ya what he said,were pro's.And its nothing like drinking at all.Trust me.

 

[AP Tech]

As long as the FAR's are not violated you are legal. Its funny you are not permitted to work more thsn 2 back to back swaps in a work week but if its OT you can do as many as you wish.....

 

[allstrike]

As long as the FAR's are not violated you are legal. Its funny you are not permitted to work more thsn 2 back to back swaps in a work week but if its OT you can do as many as you wish.....

Ya funny how if it works for the company its ok. :down:

 

[Awa Contract]

That's the way the company thinks it should work - it is okay to work 36 hours straight if they want it but you have to fight for the right to do 16 straight if you want to.

 

[EricLv2Fish]

No mechanic would sign anything off unless he fixed it properly.

But you would gladly fly on a plane with pilots and fas who have on duty for 12 or more hours?

Didn't say that 700. Didn't want to go into all the jobs because I knew someone like you would point out one that would enivitably be missed. I was a aircraft mechanic for 20 years, but the career field really doesn't matter. If anyone can say they function as well after 16 hours of work as the do a normal shift they are a better person than me. Studies have been done on people's effeciency on long work days and the more hours are extended after a normal workday, mistakes increase exponentially. For this reason some career feilds do not allow longer than 12 hour shifts. The nuclear career feild immediately comes to mind and techs loading bombs on aircraft is another.

Your remark that "no mechanic would sign anything off unless he fixed it properly"...well in theory yes, but if he thought he/she fixed it properly does not count. What I mean by that is after working 16 hours dilegently with good intentions and believing the job was done right doesn't mean the job was done right. Mistakes happen and mistakes increase exponentially after a normal shift. Singled mindedness that mechanics only sign off jobs done right is off the mark.

I'd like to share a story I'm not proud of but maybe you'll understand my opinion a bit better. I'll admit I worked a 14 hour night shift and I thought I did the job right and the job itself was done right, but I left a tool under a panel by accident. I didn't realize it till the next day when I got to work and found my tool missing. I almost fainted as my mind raced through the job completed the previous evening. Fortunately the aircraft was on the ramp and I opened the panel and found the tool wedged underneath a large circuit breaker panel. Later I found out the aircraft had flown that morning and was horrified at the potentially dangerous situation I could have caused. Worst case senario the tool could have caused a short in the electrical wiring in the panel and God only knows what would have happened next, disabled systems...or worse a fire.

I assure you I thought I did the job right, but in reality I didn't do a thorough enough tool check and the end of the shift due to not being as alert as I would have been had it been a normal shift. That was the last time I ever came up short a tool, but it only takes one mistake to cause a serious situation. It is a known fact mistakes increase exponentially as hours increase over a normal workday.

 

[Charlie_Tuna]

Studies have been done on people's effeciency on long work days and the more hours are extended after a normal workday, mistakes increase exponentially.

I'd like to share a story

That was the last time I ever came up short a tool

I wonder if studies have been done on people working 3rd shift where most aircraft maintenance is done? Oh wait look what I have here.

Scary Truths about the Graveyard Shift

"Night workers make more mistakes and are more prone to accidents and illness than nine-to-fivers. Graveyard-shift workers make five times as many serious mistakes and are 20% more likely to suffer severe accidents"

So was that your last 14 hour shift that you ever worked seing as you blamed it for the mistake you made? Or do you attribute that incident for making you more aware so it will never happen again on a 14 hour shift? How many 14 hour shifts had you worked previously in your career mistake free before that incident? Do you really directly blame "not being alert enough because of 14 hour shift" with misplacing that tool? Could it have been complacency? Could it had been because it was the night shift? No other factors involved? Maybe BSing with a buddy or being rushed by a super or even the bell? Is it possible some people aren't affected as much as others on long days?

 

[700UW]

Ok Eric,

Show us a study that proves AMTs do poor work when working more than 8 hours?

What about a AMT that was up all night with a sick child and only works 8 hours, how will his job performance be?