Please find below an update concerning
- PBS
- Sickness on a rotation
- Late arrival at home base before a vacation period
- Hotel accommodation
PBS
On Friday, 08 July 2022, another working group meeting took place. The numbers presented to us show a slight increase of granted bids in July compared to previous months, which we also see in our data. Please continue to complete our monthly surveys as the data is now becoming more accurate and important for us when we compare it with the data provided by crew planning. However, the major concerns that have been identified remain. Those are:
- Bidding for off days attached to vacation
- Bidding for one block of 12 off days
- Highlighting a bid of special importance as the “remarks” are not processed by the system
Already in 04 April 2022 we sent a letter to Management to make them aware of these areas and that additional investments to tailor the software to include the required bidding options would be necessary. So far, we haven’t received a reply to this letter. It was very disappointing and frustrating to hear in the last meeting, that apparently AIMS has no capacity for additional changes until at least December 2022.
The question now is whether it still makes sense to use two different systems – AIMS for placing the bids and Jeppesen to process these bids and build the rosters – if implementations of tailored solutions for Cargolux depend on one or another provider and are not possible in a timely manner. We have pointed out our concerns and urged Senior Management to treat rostering and bidding as a priority topic.
Sickness on a rotation
As mentioned in our update on 28 March 2022, colleagues who became sick or have been put into quarantine during a rotation did not receive a compensation as per CWA 36.16.2. and 36.16.3. respectively for arriving home late into their off days. There have been very rare cases of pilots in the past who tried to benefit from the current rule over proportionally due to the absence of a clear and transparent procedure for sickness on a rotation. However, unfortunately this now triggered a change in how the company treats such cases.
We have escalated the issue with the Unions and according to the described procedure in the CWA with the aim to secure and recover the affected off days if a pilot cannot spend these days at home and are currently working on an Amendment to the CWA, which adds clarity and transparency in case of sickness on a rotation and ensures that no off days are lost.
Late arrival at home base before a vacation period
Also mentioned in our update on 28 March 2022 is a different application of CWA article 36.17.1.a)
This article specifically defines the compensation a pilot is entitled to in case of a late arrival at home base before a vacation period.
When this article was discussed in the negotiations, it was agreed that the supplement for overtime is to be applied for the purpose of calculating the compensation to be paid to the pilot as a “fine” for the company.
With Management´s decision to interpret this article in a different way than its original purpose, Management created a scenario where any pilot who already is working for more than 173 duty hours in a roster period and arrives late at home base before a vacation period is de facto not receiving any financial compensation as per article 36.17.1.a) Or, in other words, the pilot is paying this compensation out of his own pocket.
We have addressed this with Management and the Unions and were able to emphasize the original intention of this article. It was agreed to amend the text accordingly and add clarity in this context. Please click here to read the Amendment to the CWA, which was signed on 14July 2022.
Hotels
In the Hotel Committee Update sent on 05 July 2022, you received some information regarding booked hotels, which have not been inspected and suggested by the Hotel Committee as per the Cargolux Hotel Policy. Please read the latest letter that was sent to Management on 06 July 2022.
In this context we would like to remind you that in case your accommodation does not fulfill the requirements of either the Cargolux Hotel Policy and the CWA or your rest is in some way compromised, there are a couple of options you should consider:
- First, carefully evaluate your fitness to conduct your next flight. It is essential that you are well rested before commencing any flight duty. If in doubt do not hesitate to request a quieter room, potentially requiring additional rest which may delay the departure accordingly. Please don’t forget to inform all your colleagues and the local station. Make sure to file a fatigue report and send a copy to cvhotels@alpl.lu
- If the hotel has deficiencies of the standards as laid out in the hotel policy and in the CWA 2020-2022, please also file a VR and send a copy to cvhotels@alpl.lu
- Without a copy of the reports you submit, the Hotel Committee has nothing in their hands to either find a solution in a dialogue with the relevant hotel or follow-up these complaints with the Company. Therefore, please take the time and always write a report and send a copy to the Hotel Committee as well.
The ALPL Hotel Committee is fulfilling their obligation as laid out in the Hotel Policy by doing its best to select and propose suitable hotels. It is unfortunate however, that this process sometimes is being ignored and that the well-functioning of this collaboration is undermined by lack of transparency and poor communication.
To summarize we would like to end on a positive note. Two important topics are about to be solved via agreed Amendments to the CWA, which makes us cautiously optimistic to be able to return to a cooperative dialogue with Management.
Other topics like the PBS, however, remain unsolved for the time being. Meanwhile, we want to thank you for your continued support and are confident that your unity and solidarity has sent the required message to Management. Please continue to show this unity and follow our guidelines until 26 July 2022.
