Originally Posted by
Les Habitants
The things you guys are saying about jumpseating is blowing my mind.
Here in Canada we consider the ability to "jumpseat" a complete privilege. There is no such thing as walking up to the gate and asking to "use the jumpseat." You call ahead of time, pay the applicable taxes (yes, our jumpseats aren't free here), and IF there is a seat available on the plane in the back-you cannot sit in the jumpseat-you may sit there. If for ANY reason the gate agent cannot or even does not want to put you on the plane they have every right to refuse it and you are not allowed to complain or say anything.
It seems like the culture down south is very different. If anyone ever said a word about being bumped, no matter how unfair it is, you can be sure his bosses would hear about it.
The JS here is a hard fought benefit that we refuse to surrender to pompous gate agents or malevolent managers. What may seem a sense of entitlement is really us as a group fighting to keep and even improve one of the best benefits we have. The Captain of the flight is the only one that can deny you as long as you are there in time and follow the rules, subject to JS priority of course. Anyone else is subbordinate to the Captain and we really don't care who they go tattle to, they have no right to deny a pilot that hard earned and paid in full benefit. I've had gate agents "deny" me the JS a few times (too busy even though I was way early, pilot haters, etc)...yet I've made it on every single time.