Diesel 10

FedEx ends free trips for some workers

12:00 AM CDT on Saturday, August 27, 2005

By KATIE FAIRBANK / The Dallas Morning News

Following a review of safety and security concerns, FedEx Corp. has changed its policy on employee travel privileges, halting trips for staffers in its package operations who aren't on company business.

"Since personal jump seating was resumed over a year ago, we have regularly reviewed our policies and procedures to ensure that they take into consideration the latest developments in aviation safety and security," the company said in an e-mail message to employees last week.

"As a result of that review, we have made the difficult decision to suspend personal jump seat travel. At this point, we cannot say when personal jump seating might be reinstated."

The company initially included pilots in the rule change. But FedEx later restored the privilege for pilots cleared through the national Cockpit Access Security System, a program engineered by a coalition of pilot unions that allows for a pilot's identity and employment status to be verified.

"They have not shared with us any reasons why the change in policy was initiated," said Scott Sherrin, a spokesman for the Air Line Pilots Association. "We have not been given much information."

Some workers at the company say the decision to cut employee travel was due to a security breach on a recent flight from California to Memphis.

But FedEx spokesman Maury Lane said, "We have not had any flights impacted by the actions of any company personnel."

The U.S. Transportation Security Administration was unable to verify whether such a breach occurred.

FedEx1

Just to emphasize though....

ALL Fedex pilots can still jumpseat on Fedex planes- they just have to go thru the CASS system for personal use. For staging or business, call the 800 number.

ALL CASS airlines that could jumpseat before on Fedex can still do so.

Non-pilot Fedex employees can still jumpseat for business with the approriate supervisor approval.

And we all have no clue what this is all about.

Jared

Unverified rumors at the hub say that some folks were acting fishy, and rather than just fire them, they used the excuse to get rid of the benefit. Who knows if that is true or not. Having worked on the non-pilot side of that company, there is deep resentment over that entire deal. Just about all non-pilot employees that I've met (just a few out of the gozillions, mind you) believe that some of the pilots will do anything to put an end to jumpseat benefits, and whether or not it's true, it is widely believed. In my personal experience, I know that rather than hopping on a 3 hour direct flight from an outstation to my home base, I've had to spend the night, drive 3 hours, and airline 10 because they won't carry our company's pilots... and we are even flying the same colors! Can't we all be on the same team or something? I think the general frustration with everyone who isn't a fedex pilot over the issue is that it is a battle that the pilot group will ultimately win. There isn't much point in trying to fight a captain's authority once he's been hired. Unfortunatly, that percentage of the pilot group that goes through such a strict and selective interview but yet "can't land in a crosswind, and after 2 years becomes a total jerk" will prevail. By the way, that isn't my description, but for a non-insignificant group of the pilots that I've met, I can't say I dissagree.

FedEx1

I don't see this is any big conspiracy from Management. Afterall, their conspiracies usually involve screwing the pilot group, not the non-pilots.....

But seriously, apparently there have been some incidents where some non-pilot types were acting more than just suspicious on a jumpseat. Heard it was several guys out of LAX, jumping with no bags, all of middle eastern descent. (Please no one rag on me for the profile, but these guys might have had ties to terrorist groups.) Also, they might have hacked into the Fedex computer system. So shutting it down a bit was the best thing to do.

Jared, if anything, management DOES NOT go along with the "captain's authority." I can think of more than one incident where a captain wanted to not allow a jumper for various reasons- suspicious activities, animal handlers that admited they lied to get on, they were buddies of the real handlers, etc. And the captain's were FIRED.

The company isn't going to GIVE ANYTHING to the pilot group. If you think this shut down is to please the pilots, think again. We have been working under an expired contract for over a year, and there is little movement on negociations.

Most captains I have flown with don't have a problem with non-pilot jumpers. But with so many recent incidents of security breaches (the guy in MIA with a machete??? The 16 year employee an Osama follower??) I think there is a general concern. But the recent change has nothing to do with us.

Fly safe.

Fartknocker

Can spouses of FedEx pilots ride on FedEx planes? Do spouses have any travel benefits? Thanks.

FedEx1

Spouses cannot ride on the Fedex planes. Unless they fulfill one of the requirements above (pilot at a CASS airline, etc.)

We do have interline agreements with many airlines. Check with global travel. You may be able to buy discounted non-rev tickets on many airlines worldwide for your spouse, and also sometimes for dependent children and parents.

captain_drew

Will have to 100% concur with everything you said. I was one of those who periodically got a tit in the wringer over exerting "captain's authority". The managers do NOT like Captains acting like Captains. . . it dilutes their power over the pilot group.

I DOUBT very much this has anything to do with pilots, but, management’s total lack of capability to handle the major security problem engendered by their politically correct hiring policies and inability (like so many other institutions) to properly "profile" prospective employees and potential jump seaters.

NOW. . if a normal Captain were to see a suspicious Middle Eastern man approaching the jet to ride the jump seat, his natural inclination would be to bar that individual access. BUT the working atmosphere is SO chilled by the heavy hand of management, he/she weighs the months of heart-burn and emotional roller coaster of the subsequent disciplinary action. .for doing the right thing. So, Habib rides and scares the living *******t out of everyone involved . . and the plug gets pulled on everyone. Looks like the normal employee is paying the price for what management has wrought.

captain_drew

Well, here (below) is a recent update which proves my premise that FredEx management has their heads up and locked when it comes to security. This comes from a pilot’s private E-mail list that goes out periodically to several thousand Purple Pilots, as the news dictates.

For those not steeped in the FredEx Culture, I apologize for the unfamiliar terminology. It does not take rocket science to read between the lines and see what went down.

Management THINKS they have security covered, but there have been -and ARE major gaps due to simple gross bubba negligence and/or blind political correctness.

SO, when the Feds show up and start asking pertinent, probing questions, the answers to which are damning, they shut the program down, taking away a long-standing, valuable benefit to all the GOOD, non-threatening employees.

Pretty sure they will turn their own negligence and ineptitude and try to convince the other employees that is was the pilot group who caused this loss of major benefit. Negotiations getting hot. .timing is right. Seen it all before!

*“Jack” = Likely Captain Jack Miller, Duty Officer that evening, and the $#@#$ who hosed me for trying to be security conscious.
**“Webb” =ALPA official
***“Cheever” =VP of Flight
******************
Follow up on the personal jump seat issue (Thanks Mark for your permission to repost):

Airbus Captain xxx xxxx is the Captain & FFDO who caught these rag heads. They showed up, no luggage and very suspicious.

Captain apparently called FDO, Security, and *Jack (rumor part). Jack as final word said yes they are background checked and take them.

So he did. Then in AOC he photo copied everything and sent it to FBI, TSA, HLS, and The Pres. himself (other rumor).

Guess they came back to FDX Corp. asking questions like, did you know they are on “No Fly List”, and how come they were in system 24hrs, and what kind of background checks are you doing? Plus a few other questions.

FDX chose to shut down JS's. Also, I hear **Webb saw ***Bruce Cheever on the town and asked him what was up. BC said he did not know. Except where indicated, the rest is suppose to be a true story.

Ah yes, question. Do you know what they do for background check on troops? Answer, ..... A credit check, about $25 to $35. Feds weren't too pleased with that either so I hear.

Wish I could be more specific on details but this is all over heard in AOC with union reps.

I also heard roughly same story the day this all happened, although not as much detail. Hats off to an alert Captain, now maybe Union should walk into negotiations, saying lets talk or maybe the Wall Street Journal might be interested in this story, or USA Today, or etc.

Best I can give you. Fair Winds

SWAcapt

My question is, 'what hapened to Captains authority at FedEx'. At my airline, I have the final say as to who rides the jumpseat...or any other seat for that matter.

captain_drew

“Captain’s Authority” . . ? What is that?

There have been so many of us fired and/or disciplined for exercising the FAA mandated and historic concept of “Captain’s Authority” I think most shy away from getting their tit in the wringer for doing the right thing.

Management starts to breath faster and gets pretty heavy handed when a Captain tries to exercise it. You can expect to have to ‘splain your actions to a Flight Manager. They always try to read some sort of “labor activity” into everything.