Southwest Ramp Agent

Derek_S

Derek_S

New Member
Hey guys! I know, been a long time since I've last posted anything here but I've been super busy between school, friend/family, flying, and of course working. Anyways, I remember a good bunch of you were once Ramp Agents and even a percentage of you were specificly Southwest Ramp Agents, so I have a few questions for you.

Somewhere around last April I remember a lot of talk going around here about Ramp Agents (where I first heard about them) and decided to go apply as one for Southwest. At the time they weren't hiring for OAK so I ended up getting a job as a server (good tip money, but the job is growing really old already). Well last week on my birthday (what a great gift from them) to my surprise I get a letter in the mail from Southwest and I begin to read it which at first seemed like a very late "thank you for applying" kind of a letter, but it turns out that they are having a "Group Information Session" and want me to come. So my questions to you guys are:

1. What should I expect to go during this session? And is it a good start to getting a job with them?
2. What do I wear? Do I dress casually, semi-casually, or do I show up in a nice suit?
3. I fly for a few hours everyday out of my FBO because I am trying to work through all the ratings quickly, so are they pretty good at dealing with part time scheduling or should I stay away from this job?
4. This is a more professional type of job then what I have ever had so I don't know really what to expect with schedules; how does it work with getting days off with request or switching with people for different shifts, or is there none of this and it's all strictly scheduled?

All comments, suggestions, and answers are greatly appreciated. Thanks a bunch guys!
 
1. What should I expect to go during this session? And is it a good start to getting a job with them?
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Depends on what you call a good start. Will it help you land an FO job? Maybe, but I don't think it will help a lot. Besides, you still need the 1000 PIC to even qualify for the job, and you won't be able to get that while working as a ramper. What it DOES is get your foot in the door so if you get called for an interview later, you already have them on your resume. Just make sure if you do get hired to do everything correctly and leave on excellent terms.

As far as the session, it goes like this: short intro and overview of the company, go around the room and introduce yourselves, then they give you a question to answer. Everyone goes around the room answering the question. If someone else is talking, LISTEN. Don't stare off into space, jot notes in a note book, draw pictures or talk to the person next to you. If you make it past that, you've got the one-on-ones to look forward to as well as drug tests and fingerprinting.
2. What do I wear? Do I dress casually, semi-casually, or do I show up in a nice suit?
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At LEAST business casual.
3. I fly for a few hours everyday out of my FBO because I am trying to work through all the ratings quickly, so are they pretty good at dealing with part time scheduling or should I stay away from this job?
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Keep in mind that SWA does not hire ANY part timers. Every spot is full time, so you'll be scheduled a 40 hour work week. Now, after you've spent some time with the company, you can start giving away shifts to people that will take them, but I think that's either 90 days or 6 months down the road. Another thing is you might get "popped" for mandatory overtime. In Orlando, this was rare, but it DID happen. I know some stations that had no overtime and you could bank on never getting popped. In Orlando, you checked the sign up sheet to make sure you were still gonna have that first day off since we were short staffed.

That being said, I had no problem squeezing flying in. If you're looking to fly something like 6-8 hours a day 5-7 days a week, I'd pass on the job. I was able to fly 2-4 hours a day either before or after work most days without a problem. You might have to get creative with scheduling your flights (like early morning or middle of the night, whichever works best with the work schedule), but it's do-able. You also might find yourself getting pretty tired. :)

4. This is a more professional type of job then what I have ever had so I don't know really what to expect with schedules; how does it work with getting days off with request or switching with people for different shifts, or is there none of this and it's all strictly scheduled?
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You bid just like every other airline position, and it's based on seniority who gets what line. Expect to be on nights and possibly closing shifts for a while. You can switch shifts no problem with people, but day off requests are a little different. You get your two days off a month plus one "free day" every month that acts as a paid holiday. If you REALLY want a day off, bid your free day on that day. Once again, the free days also go in seniority order. What I did was find out what days off I needed ahead of time and bid my days off around it. If I need another one, I'd bid my free day. If I still needed more, I'd look to trade shifts. There's no "can you schedule me XX day off, my friend is having a party" type deals. This doesn't work for a lot of people, and all I have to say is "Welcome to the airlines, this is how it works."
 
Thanks a lot for all the info kellwolf, it really made me aware of what I'm looking into. As for whether it's a good start or not for getting a job with them I didn't quite mean FO position wise (although that would be cool), but I'm a ways away from that point. What I ment was by them asking me to come to this session, does it mean they are pretty interested in me joining their company or are there only a selected couple from the session that move on up to the interviewing process.

Thanks again for the great insite!
 
I'm a current ramp agent for Southwest at BDL. As for the hiring process, the group interview means they are intersted. It is very hard to mess this up if you are honest and seem to have confidence in yourself and look neat. They will just ask you a few questions in a group such as, "Why Southwest?", "what was your previous job?," and so on.

If you have any interset in working there, at least go to the group session. It was very informative and it helped me decide to go on with them. I will say this, I enjoy my job here, even through the long days, 17 hours the other day for a double, and long weeks, usually 6 days. I don't know about OAK, but here at BDL, when I was junior, I was getting slammed with mando OT almost everyday(now I just sign up for it when I need it). I still managed to fly 3 times a week and attend 3 classes at college, so it can be done.

Good luck with the interview and if you have any questions let me know.
 
That's the trick with getting mando'ed. Might as well sign up for the voluntary OT so you can at least pick your shift and position. :)
 
No disrespect to SWA but ever consider applying for a Ramp job with a Regional Airline in your area? In any event, I'm sure working the ramp for SWA would be a good aviation experience for you. I took a ramp job for Continental Express as a way to get my foot in the door, network, and get a few good letters of recommendation from company staff. I hope to reach the minimums sometime in 2006. Best of luck!

Aaron-

Derek_S said:
Thanks a lot for all the info kellwolf, it really made me aware of what I'm looking into. As for whether it's a good start or not for getting a job with them I didn't quite mean FO position wise (although that would be cool), but I'm a ways away from that point. What I ment was by them asking me to come to this session, does it mean they are pretty interested in me joining their company or are there only a selected couple from the session that move on up to the interviewing process.

Thanks again for the great insite!
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Yeah, I was wondering this myself. I recently applied for an American Eagle ramp job, but I am wondering how many hours I could get, seeing as there arent that many Eagle flight out of Champaign, IL a day. Also, it seems like it would be tough to get a position where they need so few people.
 
Definetely go to the interview. It's good experience whether you get the job or not. I interviewed at United this past summer and they flew me to Denver where I got to see their HQ and simulators and what not. I didn't get the job because I was a full-time student and although I told the interviewer I could handle school vs work, but he didn't offer me the job. They gave it to someone much older that was not a student. I think airlines would rather hire someone older that is not in college so they dont have to deal with scheduling conflicts. That's not to say you shouldn't apply because you may get it anyway!
 
Cool thanks again for all the help guys! I'm definitely going to the interview, just still a little confused on what to wear. I guess the traditional black shoes, black socks, dark blue pants, white collard shirt, and a red tie? Do I wear the dark blue coat as well or is that too much for a Ramp job interview?
 
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