11.04.15 – November 2015 PHX Base Brief – Round One Vacation Award/Holiday Bidding

Wednesday, November 4, 2015 – November 2015 PHX Base Brief

 

• Round One Vacation Award and Round Two Bidding
• Holiday Bidding
• Signing Up for Full Access to APFA.ORG and APFA Hotlines
• PHX Base Contact Information

 

Round One Vacation Award and Round Two Bidding

The results for Round One of the 2016-17 Vacation Award were disappointing to many Flight Attendants. The transition to fiscal year from calendar year vacation and learning and understanding how to bid in the CATCREW system, coupled with a vacation period spread out over 16 months has added to the anxiety of the results. Many Flight Attendants have now found that what was once was taken for granted in past years did not apply to the 2016-17 vacation period. While your leaders can agree that the results were not what was generally expected, over the past few days nothing amiss has surfaced in the award process through CATCREW.

Round Two bidding is open now and closes on November 15th at 21:00 PHX time. The Round Two award will be posted no later than 21:00 PHX time on November 21st. If you have vacation days to bid in Round Two, please click here for the bidding instructions. It is very important to read and understand the process that is posted on Wings and ask questions if you need clarification when bidding for Round Two. Trainers are available in the Crew Room to assist you in ensuring that your bid is input correctly.  

If you have specific questions regarding Round One Results and Round Two bidding, please call the Vacations Department at (480) 693-1916. If you feel that the system mis-awarded your Round One Bid, please submit your Bid Input Form (found on Screen 13 of CATCREW) along with your Round One Bid Award via email [email protected] as soon as possible.

The 2013 CBA (Redbook), Section 8, sub-section C, 3 and 4 outline the Secondary Bid process and the Assignment of Vacation processes. If you need help interpreting the CBA language, please give your PHX Base Representatives a call or send us an email.

The ability to trade January 2016 through April 2017 vacation days will open once the Round 2 Award is final and posted. 

Holiday Bidding

The PBS bidding window will open November 10 at 09:00 PHX time for the December bid month. Christmas is Friday, December 25th. Lineholders should keep in mind that if they could not hold the holiday off under “hard-line bidding”; they will probably not hold the holiday off under PBS bidding. Reserve Flight Attendants should pay special attention the “Must Off” and Prefer Off” parameter while bidding over the holiday, being mindful that if their seniority cannot hold a “Prefer Off” especially over the holiday, the PBS system may not be able to build you a legal Reserve Line and  you may be awarded something completely different than expected.

It will be important for bidding during the December bid month to open up your parameters in the lower layers to avoid being awarded something that you did not bid for and did not want. Please take the time to have your PBS Bid reviewed by a trainer at the airport or give the FARC a call. The FARC is available Monday through Friday 05:00 to 19:00 PHX time and can be reached at (480) 693-8232. The FARC is open on the weekends during an active Bid Period during the same hours. Bidding opens at 09:00 PHX time Tuesday November 10th and closes at 09:00 PHX time on Monday November 16th.

Signing Up for Full Access to APFA.ORG and APFA Hotlines

Most of the official communication from APFA is through email. If you have not signed up for full access to the APFA Website, please click here to begin the process.  You can add your email address to receive the APFA National and Department Hotlines by clicking here.

Your PHX Base Reps. have taken many calls over the past few days and many Flight Attendants have commented that they are not receiving emails from APFA. This will ensure that you are on list for the APFA National and Department Hotlines.  If you have specific questions about the APFA Communications, please contact Brian Clark at (817) 540-0108, ext. 8308 or [email protected]. 

PHX Base Contact Information

APFA PHX Base Representatives can be reached by calling (480) 966-1231, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. This number is a voicemail system that allows the caller to leave a message for a specific Representative. 

Press:

0 to leave a General Message
1 to reach the APFA National Contract Desk
2 for PHX Base President, Joseph Seelye
3 for PHX Base Council Rep. on Duty
4 for the Mandatory Meeting Hotline
5 for the PHX Benefits and Insurance Rep.
6 for the PHX Reserve Rep. on Duty

Please keep in mind that most APFA Representatives fly the line, please allow 24 hours for a Rep. to return your call.  If your issue is an emergency or requires immediate attention, someone will return your call as soon as possible.

• APFA EAP Reps. can be reached at (817) 540-0108, ext. 8701, [email protected] 
• Critical Incident Response Team members can be reached at (800) 998-8194
• PHX Base Professional Standards can be reached at (817) 540-0108, ext. 8620

All calls to EAP/Professional Standards are confidential.  You can also access the APFA EAP Website by clicking here.

Your PHX Base Representatives can be reached via email:

PHX Base Council Reps on Duty – [email protected] and [email protected] 

Joseph Seelye
APFA PHX Base President
[email protected]