UA QOL
05-31-2023, 03:59 PM
#51
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Joined APC: Dec 2018
Posts: 1,085
I think a lot of it is categories that aren’t used to massively high LPV lines or bad reserve coverage not knowing the trickier strategies.
I was always able to get pretty good schedules but it required a lot of creative thinking, criteria trading, breaking a 4 day into 2 2 days so I could drop the day I needed, etc.
as someone who doesn’t mind getting creative it’s kind of useful that most people are clueless about trip trading mechanics, but at the same time it’s also pretty BS that it’s so user unfriendly.
I was always able to get pretty good schedules but it required a lot of creative thinking, criteria trading, breaking a 4 day into 2 2 days so I could drop the day I needed, etc.
as someone who doesn’t mind getting creative it’s kind of useful that most people are clueless about trip trading mechanics, but at the same time it’s also pretty BS that it’s so user unfriendly.
05-31-2023, 05:49 PM
#52
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Joined APC: Sep 2016
Posts: 1,954
Things like criteria trading a four day with a single bad reserve coverage day into 4 day trips that are easy to move around or drop.
05-31-2023, 06:26 PM
#53
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Joined APC: Dec 2018
Posts: 1,085
I mean the UI is good but no one really tells newbies (or the senior finding themselves in uncharted schedule territory) how to do the more advanced trading strategies. If you’re willing to gamble a bit you can get some amazing schedules but everything I’ve learned has been self taught and I often hear “I can’t ever get any schedule modification” complaints from people.
Things like criteria trading a four day with a single bad reserve coverage day into 4 day trips that are easy to move around or drop.
Things like criteria trading a four day with a single bad reserve coverage day into 4 day trips that are easy to move around or drop.
true - but that is a function of our contract, some logical thinking and creativity. No trading software can do that for you.
05-31-2023, 06:30 PM
#54
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Joined APC: Dec 2016
Posts: 118
West coast NB FO here. In 6 months of reserve, I averaged 2-3 short calls per month. I sat field standby twice in 6 months. Almost all my reserve days were unused long call. I even went an entire month without flying. I never was assigned to fly off short call or FSB. Most of my reserve work blocks, I commuted in on day 1 and commuted home on the last day after getting auto released at 1000. Usually scheduling would agree to cut me loose an hour or so early on the last day.
I recognize that many have different reserve experiences than mine, but my reserve experience wasn’t bad and if I lived in base it would have been quite pleasant. Many other FOs in my base had similar experiences to mine, but don’t seem to post about it much on the internet. I spent a month on reserve in a different base and flew 16 of 18 days, so some of this may be base dependent.
As a lineholder I’m getting 85-90 hr lines with 14 days off. I am generally able to make minor modifications to schedule via trip trades.
We do have some horrible trips for sure, stuff like two leg 1-days with 12 hours in between legs (spent at a hotel) that credits 5:00. Or redeyes followed by a day sleep followed by two legs. But most of the line trips are reasonable.
United’s reserve rules are by far the worst of all the legacies. But United’s reserve rules are significantly better than the reserve rules at the regional I came from.
Personally I’d think a lot about seniority when considering bailing from one legacy to another.
I recognize that many have different reserve experiences than mine, but my reserve experience wasn’t bad and if I lived in base it would have been quite pleasant. Many other FOs in my base had similar experiences to mine, but don’t seem to post about it much on the internet. I spent a month on reserve in a different base and flew 16 of 18 days, so some of this may be base dependent.
As a lineholder I’m getting 85-90 hr lines with 14 days off. I am generally able to make minor modifications to schedule via trip trades.
We do have some horrible trips for sure, stuff like two leg 1-days with 12 hours in between legs (spent at a hotel) that credits 5:00. Or redeyes followed by a day sleep followed by two legs. But most of the line trips are reasonable.
United’s reserve rules are by far the worst of all the legacies. But United’s reserve rules are significantly better than the reserve rules at the regional I came from.
Personally I’d think a lot about seniority when considering bailing from one legacy to another.
Our rules are really bad (worse than the regional I used to fly for) but they don't use them to their fullest extent until something bad happens or they just get over-scheduled. That leads a lot of people to believe that the rules aren't that bad because they either haven't flown during hectic times or they just got lucky and didn't get the full experience of our crappy rules.
Everyone has their unique perspectives, but a good measure of how the 15,000 pilots feel about our reserve rules is that we have unfilled Captain vacancies in almost every base.
05-31-2023, 06:38 PM
#55
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Thread Starter
Joined APC: May 2023
Posts: 502
Respectfully, it looks like you haven't flown reserve through the summer months. My reserve experience on the west coast was the exact opposite. Scheduled above the 95 hour buffer, had HDO's taken away, almost every trip had a red-eye/dayover, field standby's, short-calls on last day of reserve block, etc.
Our rules are really bad (worse than the regional I used to fly for) but they don't use them to their fullest extent until something bad happens or they just get over-scheduled. That leads a lot of people to believe that the rules aren't that bad because they either haven't flown during hectic times or they just got lucky and didn't get the full experience of our crappy rules.
Everyone has their unique perspectives, but a good measure of how the 15,000 pilots feel about our reserve rules is that we have unfilled Captain vacancies in almost every base.
Our rules are really bad (worse than the regional I used to fly for) but they don't use them to their fullest extent until something bad happens or they just get over-scheduled. That leads a lot of people to believe that the rules aren't that bad because they either haven't flown during hectic times or they just got lucky and didn't get the full experience of our crappy rules.
Everyone has their unique perspectives, but a good measure of how the 15,000 pilots feel about our reserve rules is that we have unfilled Captain vacancies in almost every base.
05-31-2023, 07:24 PM
#56
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Joined APC: Sep 2016
Posts: 1,954
You get reassigned into them while already on a trip.
ie
You’re on your last day of reserve. You get called with an assignment You’re supposed to fly a DEN turn. You get to DEN and due to weather you get reassigned along with your lineholder Captain/FO into a Billings overnight getting you back into Chicago at 8pm the next day.
again there are steps and an order to this they are supposed to follow to minimize reassignments but it can happen.
what they can’t do as a reserve is call you on your last day of reserve and assign you a two day trip into an HDO.
ie
You’re on your last day of reserve. You get called with an assignment You’re supposed to fly a DEN turn. You get to DEN and due to weather you get reassigned along with your lineholder Captain/FO into a Billings overnight getting you back into Chicago at 8pm the next day.
again there are steps and an order to this they are supposed to follow to minimize reassignments but it can happen.
what they can’t do as a reserve is call you on your last day of reserve and assign you a two day trip into an HDO.
06-01-2023, 05:28 AM
#57
Gets Weekends Off
Joined APC: Mar 2018
Posts: 2,501
Respectfully, it looks like you haven't flown reserve through the summer months. My reserve experience on the west coast was the exact opposite. Scheduled above the 95 hour buffer, had HDO's taken away, almost every trip had a red-eye/dayover, field standby's, short-calls on last day of reserve block, etc.
Our rules are really bad (worse than the regional I used to fly for) but they don't use them to their fullest extent until something bad happens or they just get over-scheduled. That leads a lot of people to believe that the rules aren't that bad because they either haven't flown during hectic times or they just got lucky and didn't get the full experience of our crappy rules.
Everyone has their unique perspectives, but a good measure of how the 15,000 pilots feel about our reserve rules is that we have unfilled Captain vacancies in almost every base.
Our rules are really bad (worse than the regional I used to fly for) but they don't use them to their fullest extent until something bad happens or they just get over-scheduled. That leads a lot of people to believe that the rules aren't that bad because they either haven't flown during hectic times or they just got lucky and didn't get the full experience of our crappy rules.
Everyone has their unique perspectives, but a good measure of how the 15,000 pilots feel about our reserve rules is that we have unfilled Captain vacancies in almost every base.
06-01-2023, 05:38 AM
#58
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Joined APC: Dec 2018
Posts: 1,085
it is also true that senior WB FOs don’t want to touch it - for different reasons other than reserve.
There are multiple factors but reserve is certainly one of them for a part of the population.
06-01-2023, 05:50 AM
#59
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Joined APC: Mar 2018
Posts: 2,501
It sure is for some segment of the pilot group.it’s. Its not like relatively junior hires are excited about the early upgrade - beating down the door to upgrade.
it is also true that senior WB FOs don’t want to touch it - for different reasons other than reserve.
There are multiple factors but reserve is certainly one of them for a part of the population.
it is also true that senior WB FOs don’t want to touch it - for different reasons other than reserve.
There are multiple factors but reserve is certainly one of them for a part of the population.
06-01-2023, 06:04 AM
#60
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Joined APC: Feb 2008
Posts: 403
It sure is for some segment of the pilot group.it’s. Its not like relatively junior hires are excited about the early upgrade - beating down the door to upgrade.
it is also true that senior WB FOs don’t want to touch it - for different reasons other than reserve.
There are multiple factors but reserve is certainly one of them for a part of the population.
it is also true that senior WB FOs don’t want to touch it - for different reasons other than reserve.
There are multiple factors but reserve is certainly one of them for a part of the population.
I could hold a line, but if I upgrade, I give up all weekends that are not vacation, so in essence I go from having off all weekends and holidays to working all weekends and holidays...for an extra 3-4k a month(but not really since as a senior FO I can get the premium that closes that gap). The senior people in a base also get it all if they want it. There are no green slips here at United.
Money is nice, but our PBS and scheduling sucks.
I think there is one thing that would "fix" the company's issues and vastly increase the QOL of everyone here, but most will probably balk at it because we have a bunch of old people that have been **** on and must exert maximum pain for everyone.
Make golden days off a monthly bid. Everyone gets 2 days they pick to have off. Make some rules that they can't touch a holiday or other days, but if everyone got at least 2 days to choose off each month, you can have your kids birthday off, you get your anniversary off, you can attend your nephew's graduation, etc.
This is basically a "no cost" item for the company. It doesn't give any more days off it just allows even Jr guys to pick a group of days off.
Yes, not everyone can bid the same weekend off so it's not perfect. But how many people can't get off for their kids birthday because they have to fly a ****ty 4 day?
Is it really "fair" in a union industry that our seniority means "everything"? Could we agree that it's important for even the junior guys to get one "bite at the apple" before the senior guys eats the apple to it's core?
This would actually probably help reliability and reduce sick calls which would make reserve more palatable.
This should be industry standard. I would argue to even go a step further and it should be at least a 3 day block for these GDOs as well.
Full disclosure, I'm a middle seniority guy here at 15 years. I would stand to benefit pretty good in the next few years when I can finally get to <50-60% in base and then get "all weekends and holidays" off.
Another fix for our UPA is to create a "green slip" type system like DL.
Why is it the top 10% in base can literally drop every trip they want and wait for the premium to roll in while mid to jr lineholders can't get jack? At DL, once you get one premium, more Jr lineholders get a shot at a premium prior to the Senior picking the bone dry.
We've got a problem here at United that's engrained in our culture, and it's basically a "SENIORITY TRUMPS EVERYTHING" culture.
Even DL and AA realize that "booking" the jumpseat is a great QOL enhancer, but here at United, we want the Sr guys to be able to show up 30 mins prior to departure because they got in early and snag that jumpseat, even though there was another one 2 hrs later they had planned on.
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