7.25.22 – Holding Trips Out of ROTD

Monday, July 25, 2022

Holding Trips Out of ROTD

We have been challenging the company on the practice of holding certain trips out of ROTD. The practice has caused many Reserve Flight Attendants to not receive awards for their aggressive bids. This is a violation of the Daily Scheduling Award and Assignment language in JCBA Section 12.K.2.

Trips that open the day before or day of origination, up to two hours prior to departure (three hours in a co-terminal base), must first be offered to Lineholders through UBL. During daily processing, trips not awarded in UBL should immediately be processed in ROTD according to JCBA Section 12.K.2.b., awarding to aggressive reserves before being assigned to Flight Attendants on a RAP.

Many Flight Attendants have rightfully been frustrated by this violation. This has resulted in some Reserves not getting the trip they bid for aggressively. Instead, many with aggressive bids have been assigned a trip they didn’t bid for, only to see the trip they wanted being subsequently assigned to a more junior reserve in the same or a later RAP.

Not only is this frustrating to Reserves with aggressive bids, but also to those who are inevitably assigned the trip. Many describe seeing trips sitting in Open Time for hours on end, to then receive a call from Crew Scheduling with minimum call out time to report to the airport for the assigned trip.

We are monitoring the company’s actions in this regard and have noticed an improvement in processing times for open trips in ROTD. Instead of seeing certain trips languishing in open time for an extended period of time, Crew Scheduling has been processing them in a timelier manner.

What does this mean for Reserves?

The JCBA language for Reserves is predicated on Flight Attendants having the ability to bid for and be awarded trips they want to fly. When the company processes Open Time in UBL and ROTD the way the contract intends, Reserves receive more aggressive awards. Additionally, this reduces the likelihood of minimum call outs for Reserves assigned trips.

What does this mean for Lineholders?

Trips will spend less time in Open Time. Trips should not be run through UBL multiple times. Once UBL has run and a trip has not been awarded, it should immediately be run through ROTD and either awarded to a Reserve with an aggressive bid or assigned to a RAP Flight Attendant.

If you are a Lineholder and want to pick up flying from UBL, make sure you have ballots in for the trips you want to fly. In addition to bidding for the specific trips you want, consider creating a generic ballot that would capture the trips you desire in the event a trip opens that you didn’t have a specific ballot in for. For a refresher on Generic Bidding in UBL, review the TTS & UBL Guide available on Crew Change. Generic Bidding information starts on page 25.

APFA Contract & Scheduling Desk
Call 817-540-0108
Monday – Friday, 0700 – 1900 (CT)

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(Link may be found on homepage of APFA.org)

In Solidarity,

Jeff Petersen
APFA National Contract Chair
[email protected]

Marti McMillan
APFA National Scheduling Chair
[email protected]