Reserve Standing Preference(s) Reminder

FEB 25 - For Flight Attendants serving Reserve, the Reserve Preference system offers the ability to set requested parameters, through daily and standing preferences, as a way to select from among the trips available for assignment.

Flexibility and the ability to control our flight schedules is something that we, as Flight Attendants, collectively value as a critical component of our lifestyle.  Each of us has different preferences when it comes to when, where and with whom we fly. By utilizing the various tools provided under our Contract, we increase the opportunities to obtain our most desired type of flying.

For Flight Attendants serving Reserve, the Reserve Preference system offers the ability to set requested parameters, through daily and standing preferences, as a way to select from among the trips available for assignment. While not every preference can be honored all the time, it does enable the Flight Attendants to seek the type of flying they prefer or, at a minimum, to raise or lower the potential of being assigned a trip of their choosing.

We have recently seen an increase in the number of questions from Reserves trying to understand why they received an assignment based on their position on the Reserve availability list for a particular day.  In an effort to provide some clarity, it is important to always keep in mind that many factors can affect a trip being awarded.  All open trips will always be assigned to the extent there is someone legal, qualified, and available to fly it.  Other factors such as time accrued, days of availability, qualifications, legal rest requirements for Flight Attendants in motion as well as the dynamic changes that occur in the operation with flight arrivals and departure, all affect the assignment of these open pairings.

While a majority of these factors which affect trip assignment while on Reserve are out of our control as Flight Attendants, if you have ANY standing preference(s) you are essentially telling crew scheduling you want to fly a trip. This can result in your being assigned before someone who has no preferences set.

In many of the instances where Flight Attendants have questioned their Reserve assignments often believing they have been assigned out of order, in most of these cases the assignment is tied to having a standing preference on file in the Reserve Preference system. Review your standing preferences frequently and remove them in those circumstances where they do not meet your needs.

To learn more about the Reserve Preferencing Strategy or for help in understanding how Reserve Preferencing can be used to its fullest extent, contact your Local Council Reserve Committee.