Attention CJC'ers
- Thread starter SmitteyB
- Start date
SlumTodd_Millionaire
Most Hated Member
I once had to represent a guy that was given a MT when scheduling tried to junior man him on his wedding day. Believe me, PCL screw scheduling and management have no shame.
kellwolf
Piece of Trash
Please tell me he didn't answer the phone. I've got my whole family trained not to answer the phone if it's scheduling on my day off. With the number of FOs dropping rapidly, they might actually get to me on the list as far as JMing go. Heck, they tried to JM JH on the CA side 4 times in one month!
Yeah, they MTd me for the jury duty. According to scheduling they only have "two things" they can use, sick and MT. Which is total BS. The scheduler I talked to probably didn't have a clue, and no doubt doesn't even work here anymore. I'm not sure who was more shocked they actually did it, me or the base manager when she asked me about it.
SmitteyB
Well-Known Member
Hey man- which one were you? I was flying with Paul DaSilva out of ITH- sitting in the back of the bus.
SlumTodd_Millionaire
Most Hated Member
Yep, he answered. He was answering his phone every couple of minutes to deal with the wedding stuff (flowers, catering, etc...), so he wasn't even looking at the caller ID on his cell phone when it rang. He told them that he was about to walk down the aisle in a few minutes, and scheduling's answer was the usual "are you refusing the trip?" He responded "I'm not refusing, it's just my wedding day. I obviously can't come in right now." Scheduling: "well, that's going to be a missed trip, then. You'll have to talk to your base manager." Click! Needless to say, we went into the meeting and the base manager thought it was as ridiculous as I did, but I made sure to go off on a little rant about how someone in management needs to get these schedulers under control. Of course, years later, no one has. Simply the best!!!
Van_Hoolio
Well-Known Member
The best advice given to me about crew scheduling was from one of the assistant chief pilots at my company during my OE exit interview. He told me that, basically, crew scheduling was a machine and not a person. That's a good way to think about "it".
Firebird2XC
Well-Known Member
If that's the case, then CJC crew scheduling is either running on multiple MELs/CDLs or is just plain mechanically hazardous.
v1valarob
Well-Known Member
Ill apologize for the way CS was to you. Thats the worse thing as a CS when you turn up at 4am and there is a message at 1am from a pilot or FA calling out sick. I would NEVER call a house phone at 430am. This is when I decided that when I got on with a regional, I would have a pay as you go phone that would be for work, and as soon as I stepped off that plane it was going to be turned off.
I was actually "talked to" by the dispatch manager because he gave me a change to someones schedule, so the show time was like 4pm instead of 130pm, and this change was given to me at about 6am. So I decided that I would leave the person on the not notified list because I wasn't about to call the person at 6am for something like that, and I would just wait till a normal time. Well at about 11am a new CS comes in and the first thing they normally do is go down the not notified list and ask what each one is all about. I told them about the situation and that I was just about to call them. Well the main dispatcher finds out and tells me that the reason he told me at 6am about the change, was so that I could notify the person at that time. Which is ####ing stupid!!!
The worse thing was when we needed to "tweak" a schedule so that the persons show time was 1 minute before departure time so that the day would be legal, knowing full well that the FO or CA was not going to show up 1 minute before arrival. I pretty much refused to ever do that, but again would get into trouble when I didn't. My reasoning was always "what if there is an accident and the NTSB comes in and looks at this, we will be in trouble." But I guess who cares, right?
As for the Jury Duty, there is most certainly a code for crewtrac I think its "JDY" or "JTY" and it gives the person the day off and puts the original trip into open trips. I remember some people being off for weeks at a time for jury duty because they where picked for cases that would take that long. All thats required was whatever the court gives you as proof.
-Rob
I was actually "talked to" by the dispatch manager because he gave me a change to someones schedule, so the show time was like 4pm instead of 130pm, and this change was given to me at about 6am. So I decided that I would leave the person on the not notified list because I wasn't about to call the person at 6am for something like that, and I would just wait till a normal time. Well at about 11am a new CS comes in and the first thing they normally do is go down the not notified list and ask what each one is all about. I told them about the situation and that I was just about to call them. Well the main dispatcher finds out and tells me that the reason he told me at 6am about the change, was so that I could notify the person at that time. Which is ####ing stupid!!!
The worse thing was when we needed to "tweak" a schedule so that the persons show time was 1 minute before departure time so that the day would be legal, knowing full well that the FO or CA was not going to show up 1 minute before arrival. I pretty much refused to ever do that, but again would get into trouble when I didn't. My reasoning was always "what if there is an accident and the NTSB comes in and looks at this, we will be in trouble." But I guess who cares, right?
As for the Jury Duty, there is most certainly a code for crewtrac I think its "JDY" or "JTY" and it gives the person the day off and puts the original trip into open trips. I remember some people being off for weeks at a time for jury duty because they where picked for cases that would take that long. All thats required was whatever the court gives you as proof.
-Rob
Seggy
Well-Known Member
Rob, good post. I blame a lot of our crews here though for putting up with it and not having the balls to say NO. A crew scheduler decided to give me the one minute show time before departure. We left exactly one hour later. It takes me an hour to get the plane out on time, I'm not going to rush. However, we have a lot of guys here who think they are being 'company men' and risk their certificates to do it.
Pretty stupid if you ask me.
Pretty stupid if you ask me.
v1valarob
Well-Known Member
For new guys, make sure that scheduling doesn't change up the off time at the end of the day. Im sure you know, but they do that as well to get the next day to work. I think it was supposed to be 15 minutes after the arrival time is your official "off time" but I have seen it changed to 1 minute after arrival just to get the next day to work.
Also if your on reserve at 11, don't pick up your phone until 11. I don't know how many times it would be 6am and dispatch was having us calling people to get them to come in early. It shouldn't be the pilots fault that they where scheduled to begin reserve at 11am. Most people would pick up. There was one captain who we would call a few hours before reserve started and leave messages and at exactly 11am they would call back.
You have an hour to get to the airport!!!! Dont let scheduling threaten you because you cant make it in within 20 minutes, thats not reasonable and your given an hour.
Most threats handed out by scheduling are idle threats. They love to throw that missed trip threat alot, but most of the time scheduling realizes they still need you for something later on (because there are only a few people at the outstation) and end up taking that missed trip off for a real trip.
-Rob
kellwolf
Piece of Trash
I'm sure the FAA would LOVE to hear about that when it comes to crew rest....
Pinnacle does this one a LOT. Most of the time, I'll let it go to voicemail, see what they have to say. If they just say "Call us," I go on CrewTrac and see what they did to me. If it's actually a good trip, I'll click "notify." If it sucks, I'll back out of CrewTrac without self-notifying and let them call me back during my reserve period. Granted, I haven't been on reserve in over a year, but that time is coming around again....
This is another big one. "We need you there as soon as you can." Okay.....I'll be there in an hour and a half. "Can you make it faster?" I'll try. But figure on it being an hour and a half.
Sad thing is a lot of pilots will go off on crew scheduling w/o thinking that they do have a pretty thankless job, and most of the decisions come not from the scheduler on the phone, but from management above them.
v1valarob
Well-Known Member
I was between August 2006 and December 2006. When they scheduled me to work 8 - 6 Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, New Years Eve and New Years Day. I said thanks but no thanks.
I knew being the junior scheduler at the time that I would be working those days most likely. But I was hired to work from 4am - 2pm. At least with those hours I can come home from work on Christmas and have dinner, and do presents, but 8-6? And we couldnt do Christmas on Christmas Eve because of the same problem. What the ef is that?
But that was only the breaking point as to why I left.
-Rob
wheelsup
Well-Known Member
If any of you guys want access to Grand Central, let me know. It's pretty neat. If someone calls with an unknown number they are forced to input their name and GC will tell you who it is before you connect. If it's known you obviously know it's CS. You can listen in to when they leave a voice message and take it if your trip is being canceled for OE or let it go to voicemail if they are trying to junior man you. You can also record calls on the fly so if they start to get "funny" or ask you to do stuff you don't like, you can record it at any time. Chances are the knowledge that you are recording will shut them up pretty quick (it's kinda fun, it says "recording now"...kinda catches 'em off guard). Also it stores it as an MP3 for easy forwarding to union reps or a Fed.
Oh, and it's free.
Oh, and it's free.
v1valarob
Well-Known Member
For CJC people, I know it doesnt help the Pilots or FAs too much, but all phone conversations in crew Scheduling and dispatch are recorded. I have seen some schedulers get into trouble for talking too much about personal things.
So if you ever get into trouble and they claim you where told something but you really weren't. Tell them to prove it with the recordings, and they can pull them up really easily on the computer.
-Rob
So if you ever get into trouble and they claim you where told something but you really weren't. Tell them to prove it with the recordings, and they can pull them up really easily on the computer.
-Rob
ERfly
Well-Known Member
Are the dispatchers and others calling back on the cell phone still to pressure guys into doing stuff? That was my favorite!
Also, is the scheduling/dispatch manager you speak of go by the initials of DR? I have some stories to tell on that one.
God, I miss that place!
The FO I was flying with today lives fairly close to the airport. He was telling me that when he was on reserve, scheduling found this little nugget out. He said he got a call one morning and the first question was, "How soon can you be to the airport?" He responded, "2 hours." I could have hugged him.
Our CSes are starting to pull some shady stuff, from what I hear.
v1valarob
Well-Known Member
Yea, DR.
I have not heard of the cell phone deal. I havent worked there in a year though now.
-Rob
Firebird2XC
Well-Known Member
v1valarob
Well-Known Member
At CJC? One got fired because he "sexually harassed" another scheduler, but they where looking for a reason to fire him. They thought this guy was an ALPA insider since he started to work in scheduling right when the ALPA drive got going, he lived in DC and drove a nice car which is not possible on a schedulers salary, and some other reasons which I cant remember. I think they where just bored.
There is one schedulers who stalks pilots hahaha.
But otherwise I know of no scheduler who has been fired for stalking flight attendants.
-Rob