LAYOVER - AT Component

SCFP/CUPE LOCAL 4078 SUMMER 2018

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LAYOVER Hello everyone, Here it is, this executive’s first LaYoVeR newsletter. We hope you take the time to read it and learn a bit more on the topics we have decided to share with you.

I would like to thank everyone that has taken the initiative to contact the company with their issues. I have seen the company resolve numerous issues and grant premiums or fix open bidding mistakes very quickly over the past few months. Whether it is payroll, uniform, open bidding, etc., the union always needs the company's answer, refusal, interpretation in order to proceed and file a grievance. Always cc your local in order for us to have the email trail and even if your issue is resolved, it is beneficial to keep track of what the reoccurring problems are. As a reminder, we are not allowed to pick up the phone and speak to crew sked on your behalf. However, we are here to advise you on what article to quote in order to form your argument.

At our last local base meeting I brought up the importance of knowing your collective agreement. We know it is a lot of information but just try to learn an article or two, you never know when this bit of information will be helpful to your crew. There are still many paper copies in the office or download it on your phone. There are also two 'Coles Notes' -type documents, which are available to you; Collective Agreement On-the-Go and the Reserve Handbook. I cannot stress enough that many situations unfold at a quick rate and knowing some of these articles when speaking with crew sked would be very useful. Secondly, we are always looking to improve our overall working conditions but in order to know what you would like to improve upon, you need to know what you currently have.

Finally, please note that I will be flying for the month of August and Sheena and Aida will be covering work in the office. I will then be back in the office for September. Please make sure to call the VP phone if you have any questions or issue that arises. I will keep checking emails and messages but note it might take me a bit longer to answer you depending where I am. Looking forward to seeing you if I’m lucky enough to be part of your crew.

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It’s been brought to our attention that a few members seem to have the mentality that getting a “No show” is no big deal. Actually this couldn’t be further from the truth. Did you know that getting a no show can be cause for disciplinary action? Depending on where a member is in their disciplinary progression, a no show could lead to a suspension or worse. As much as we try

MYTH BUSTER: Getting a No Show is no big deal!

LOCAL EXECUTIVE INFO

PRESIDENT Christy McGregor 778-998-4078 [email protected]

VICE-PRESIDENTS Aida Ortega Sheena Sumra 604-837-4078 [email protected] SECRETARY-TREASURER Lisette Bergeron [email protected]

TOLL FREE # 1-877-987-4078

Union Office #

604-303-3591 *Do not leave message at this number

Other info

FACEBOOK GROUP: Cupe Local 4078 Q&A And More

Christy

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to fight them, a number of grievances have been lost as of late as attendance issues are difficult to justify. Remberber you have available to you PED for last minute emergencies as well as sick days for illnesses. As the summer month get very busy and tiring, please take extra care to do your check-in and be aware of your RSV times.


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You often hear us toss around these acronyms and many of you may not actually know what they stand for. In general we are referring to our regular meetings with the company. These are held 8 times a year and normally take place in Montreal. Our next one is in September.

CEM (Component Executive Meeting): This portion is two days long and is attended by your 6 Component executive members: the component executive and the 3 local Presidents. Our CUPE national rep is also present to consult and advise us. All component executive members submit a list of topics that they would like to discuss. We all have the opportunity to present questions, topics, and arguments and decide if any of these subjects warrant presenting to the company. This meeting is also the time when results and voting takes place regarding Level 2 grievance hearings.

CPS: (Comité Patronale Syndicale): We then meet with the company to follow up on past issues as well as bring new ones to the table. Many subjects are as a result of interpretation of the collective agreement, how it is being implemented and what can we do to improve things. During this meeting the company will present their side and the Union, theirs. Each side presents arguments as well as recommendations. Often, one side will need to do further research or seek legal or department advice in order to give an answer. Many topics remain open for a few meetings (and some much longer) until both sides agree to close the subject. Others will remain in disagreement and these will often end up as grievances. Many of the issues you email or ask your local about will be taken to one, if not both of these meetings in order to get the possible outcome for you the members. Keep your concerns coming!

CEM/CPS…what the heck is that?

NEW SUPERVISOR FOR YVR For the past 2 months, the YVR base has been lucky to finally have a supervisor working in the

office. That said, your union reps, are still fielding frequent communication from members that are

not union related. While we are happy to help, we have started stepping back from these questions and have asked you to get in touch with inflight

when we see that the matter is not union related. This is not that we do not want to assist you but

more because we must maintain our focus on our own union related duties. These pass few months have been very busy and we want to stay ahead of

the game work wise. Thank you for your understanding:

Email infl ight at:

[email protected]

NEXT BASE MEETING

SEPTEMBER 21 11AM-2PM

MARK YOUR CALENDAR

SERVICE COMMITTEE MEETING: SEPT 25-26 [email protected]

HOTEL COMMITTEE MEETING: OCT 2-3

[email protected] **Email your comments/concerns ASAP

UNION FACT: Grievances are property of the Union. You as a member file a complaint or report, not a grievance. Along with your complaint you should provide us with all supporting documentation and the company’s refusal to follow the CA. It is with this info that your union will do further research, consultation and possibly even another request to the company. After this has been done, it is the local that decides if there is enough evidence to go forward and file a grievance. You will be informed either way if a grievance can be filed and if not, the reason why.

SCFP CUPE LOCAL 4078 SUMMER 2018

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I would like to take a moment to explain the ins and outs of having union representation with a few other facts from a Treasurer (aka the penny pincher) point of view because unfortunately as surprising as it may sound, we do not have local union reps working 24h a day/7 days a week.

Each month, YVR base has 1 union rep “flight released” for that month. That rep is released for 88 hours and has 10 days off. The local has a bank of hours that has to last the entire year. This bank needs to cover all aspects of how your Local runs. It is not solely for the use of a full time rep but must also cover members of the executive to attend the base meetings, the audit with the 3 trustees, the sec/treasurer book keeping, union education, etc. Unfortunately there are not enough hours for a union officer to have 24h/7 day coverage.

In a world of cell phones and social media, it might feel like there is someone on call 24/7 because we are more than happy to reply to a Facebook post and messages at varying hours of the day and night but other than the person flight released, all other work from other union reps is “volunteered”. If the NON-released union rep works more than 4h in their day (which does happen), expenses would then be covered. In the past few months, unfortunately the expenses have been increasing as we, the new executive have settled in and done some training. In order to get the new executive set up along with keeping the local issues at the forefront, it has resulted in the reps not taking their days off because they want to answer everyone. All this easily adds up.

Due to budget constraint, for the moment, we can only pay the expenses for the union rep released to work in the office for 10 days and the other 10 days are worked from home. At this time I’m working on calculations to ask the Component for more funds in order to have someone in the office for more days a month vs work from home. We have had increased positive feedback as result of your union rep being available before and after flights. As well, the office presence has allowed more issues with In-Flight to be dealt with immediately.

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We have compared and inquired on how other locals (TS and outside) operate and I believe that to keep your executive sane and on budget, they need to take their days off. Just like you are all entitled to your 10-12 days off a month, your union rep should also be able to run errands, book appointments or just enjoy their day here and there without having to bring the union cell phone with them.

Starting August 1st, the local rep released for the month will supply me with their garanteed days off in order to be published in the monthly union calendar. This calendar will be published on Facebook, posted on the union door in the crew room and as well we will be sending it via email. So if you find that you are not getting an answer fast enough, keep in mind that it might be their day off. That said, leave a message or send an email and they will get back to you as soon as possible. Please note that Christy, Sheena (soon Aida) have been alternating the monthly flight release to be able to fly and might be away on a pairing to be able to keep a finger on the pulse of what is going on. The monthly calendar is the perfect tool to see who is flight released that month and what cell number to contact.

Our Local 4078 Facebook group is a great tool to get some answers. (NB: We do not follow or answer any comments/questions on “Foire”.) It can be a good way also to get an answer because of the amount of members who reads the posts and check things out. Shout out to you all who answer other member when you see their post before us! Also, another executive or even a committee rep might have seen a post and be able to offer an answer at some point too. It’s a team effort and we are all in this together. Knowing your collective agreement and your rights is also important. Take the time to download the CA and have it ready in case you need it. The “CA on the Go” was recently sent to you all and might offer a quick answer.

My main goal at the end of the day is to stay on budget and hopefully have a bit extra for next year. You’ll understand why I feel it’s important for the days off to be respected. Until then, know that I’m crunching numbers to see about getting more budget for more union office days.

L ise t t e

Corner The


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Crew sked and the rsv

It has been brought to our attention that Crew Sked is

calling RSV FA the night before their pm RSV ends for a flight

the next day after their pm RSV start. This is way over 12h in

advance. If this happens to you, please make sure to email us all the details. We have been able to get the last minute premium for the FA on rsv on the last 3 occasions because doing this

goes agains the open bid procedure and Crew sked should not be doing this.

EXTRA EMAIL INFO

Here are some extra emails. Add them right away to your address book and when things happen on the flight, write your email during your break so the email will be sent when you get wifi J

YOUR PAIRING KEEPS BUSTING Email your committee and cc your local:

[email protected]

SOMETHING WRONG WITH CREW MEALS/BOXES: Email your committee and cc your local:

[email protected]

Summer came in full swing this year and it’s crazy to believe that we’re already in August. Our flying months have been so busy and I know how stressful this can be. I’ve been working with a lot of mixed seniority crews, and a topic we’ve been discussing is mental health. As a team, we’ve realized how important it is to keep our physical and mental health in balance as difficult as it may be sometimes in our profession. It is our job to keep passengers safe and secure, in order to do that successfully we must be mentally aware and focused. Most of the crews I spoke to were unaware that Air Transat offers an Employee Assistance Program (EAP) to use whenever we need to. There is a toll-free 1-800 number we can call whenever we feel the need to speak to a professional, which doesn’t have to be work related. The best part of this program is that it is FREE. The next time you’re on Mundo click on the Human Resources link, then on the EAP and wellness section, this will take you directly to all the information about what the Shepell Company offers us. Their services range from the hotline where you can speak to a professional regarding nutritional help, assistance with legal issues, personal finance, interpersonal or family issues, workplace challenges and addiction issues just to name a few. They also provide useful links within this section of helpful websites to visit that can help with stressful challenges that we may face. So, the next time you feel you need to speak to someone about anything that might be causing you stress or mental grief please don't hesitate to use this source. I hope everyone enjoys the rest of his or her summer.

Happy flying everyone!

The

Aida

CORNER

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