IAH Council 42 September 2016 Schedule Update
The flight attendant September schedule month is 30 days, beginning on August 30th and ending on September 28.
New for the International Schedule for September: LHR and MUC/IAD/MUC
We will cover all 8 positions on IAH/LHR flights 97/96 which transitions from legacy CO beginning on September 6th. We will also cover 3 positions on IAH/LHR flights 880/879 daily. MUC will be flown as a 6 day ID. German language positions will remain as 4 day trip as well as 2 non-language positions on Tuesdays and Wednesdays.
Flying for September also includes GRU, LIM, HNL as well as Mexico, Central America and Caribbean island flying. Line averages are extremely low in most crew complements for September which created challenges for the committee while building and required mixing of IDs within many of the lines in order to meet company quotas. Line averages for September are even lower than August in Domestic (73:16 vs 75:59) and remain low in International (76:25 vs 76:01).
- Domestic Lines - A total of 324 Flight Attendant positions (a decrease of 97 positions from August) with a line average of 73:16. This total includes twelve qualified Purser lines with wide-body flying, a decrease of 4 positions from August.
- International Lines - A total of 377 Flight Attendant positions (an increase of 74 total Flight Attendant positions from August) with a line average of 76:25. The above total includes 55 Purser qualified positions (an increase of 1), 19 Spanish language qualified positions (a decrease of 5), 11 German language qualified positions (a decrease of 1) and 14 Portuguese language qualified positions (no change).
- Reserve Lines - For the month of September one reserve line will be built with 13 days off and one will e built with 14 days off. All remaining reserve lines will be built with the contractual minimum of 12 days off.
We would like to remind Reserve Flight Attendants who are awarded a Reserve line with more than 12 days off and did not bid for such line, have the option provided in Section 10.D.1.a.(4.). of our Contract it states - No later than three (3) days prior to the schedule change (first day of the new schedule month) – a Reserve who did not bid for but was assigned a line with the number of days exceeding the monthly applicable minimum number of days off (12), at her/his option, may contact Crew Scheduling to be assigned additional days of availability and have her/his reserve minimum guarantee adjusted (back to 78 hours). The days that will be restored are indicated in the monthly Reserve lines with a "Z".
As always, a complete scheduling report is available from the Central Schedule Committee (CSC) on the unitedafa.org website. This monthly report provides more detailed information of all issues pertaining to scheduling in IAH and around the system. Your IAH schedule committee is always available should you have any questions or concerns.
Fly Safe,
Cory, Kim, Craig, Dawn, Bettina, and Luis
For Safety's Sake
This is the First Edition of our Council's Safety Health and Security Committee Newsletter written by Scott Gibson. Hope you enjoy it.
What's all this flap over Straps?
“Flight Attendants, arm doors, cross check and verify straps.” This is the Purser's call to working crew, but do you know how to verify straps? What are the straps? They are not those red streamers that we snap into place across the windows. Those are...well...flags. The straps we are verifying are inside the door frame and should not be visible when arming the door. There is no need to verify straps upon landing, as the door has not been opened. So don't verify the flags when asked about straps, but do make sure you place the flag across the window before arming the door, and remove the flag after disarming.
Blinded by the Light
You're looking out the window to verify airplane location during taxi. You look back into the cabin and you can't see. It's bright outside, but a crew member has turned out the lights in the cabin. Cabin lighting should reflect the lighting outside to prevent temporary blindness. Lights down at night, and up during the day. Once we are safely alighted from Terra Firma, you can set the mood. But for safety, ensure cabin lights reflect the outside conditions.
The Blue Light Special
Recently, a Flight Attendant was walking through the cabin asking passengers to unplug their electrical devices before taking off. But another Flight Attendant, upon hearing the numerous requests, suggested that the Flight Attendant simply turn off the power from the Flight Attendant control panel. Thing is, the purpose is not to have all the blue lights out in the aisle, it's to prevent tripping hazards in the aisle and walkways during an evacuation from devices plugged into the outlets. So please, don't turn off the power to the outlets, have passengers unplug their devices.
The Zika Zone
Being based in Houston, we are definitely in the Zika Virus Zone. Pesky little mosquitoes, please go away. But until they do, we have to face the fact that we are subject to the possibility of infection. The virus often causes no or only mild symptoms, similar to a very mild form of dengue fever. While there is no specific treatment, paracetamol (acetaminophen) and rest may help with the symptoms. Currently, the illness cannot be prevented by medications or vaccines. It can be spread via unprotected sex and from a mother to her fetus. Symptoms may include fever, red eyes, joint pain, headache, and a maculopapular rash. Symptoms generally last less than seven days and rarely result in death. Wear mosquito repellent and check around your home for standing water, where mosquitoes breed, which should be dumped. You can read more about Zika on line at www.cdc.gov .
I'm Bart Simpson...who are you?
Whenever we access security sensitive areas, our ID badge must be clearly displayed. Out of courtesy, we often hold the door open (piggy backing) for other Flight Attendants when entering the crew lounge. When doing so don't forget to take a look at the ID of the person you are letting in. If it's not visible, ask to see it. And don't forget the saying, “If you see something; say something!” Report suspicious people, activities and bags or packages to airport personnel immediately.
Dawn Simon, Chair
Scott Gibson, Member
Did you get your ballot yet?
As we near the end of the voting period we want to ensure everyone had a chance to cast a vote. If you have not received your ballot yet or need your pin to be reset you can call the AFA-CWA Membership department and request a new one. The number to call is 800-424-2401 then option 1 and extension 706. The membership department will remain available throughout the weekend to assist those who haven't received their voting information. You can also request a pin electronically by clicking here
As you might have noticed we've had a group of Info Rep volunteers from both Council 42(UA) and Council 64 (CO) that are available in the crew room to answer questions you might have about the Tentative. Next week, Andreas Curlee, MEC Vice President, will be joining them at the table on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. Hope to see you there.
In Solidarity
Franko
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