Originally Posted by
DLax85
In recent postings, Flight Mgmt states ...
Was that in the FOM, Flight Manual, Flight Manual Bulletin, or FCIF? I read those sources of regulatory information as required, but I try to avoid the distraction of Company propoganda when I endeavor to operate an aerospace vehicle. I think I'm safer that way.
Originally Posted by
DLax85
... the average age of FDX pilots has only increased from 49 yrs old to 50 yrs old since 2010, however, comparing the “averages” of two different distributions does not necessarily make them equivalent.
What is it they say about statistics? There are lies, damn lies, and statistics? You can prove anything with statistics?
Average? Mean? Median? Mode? I can narrate vastly different stories with different numbers commonly referred to as average. It's a common misperception that, by definition, half of any population is below average.
Here's the only statistic I'm concerned with -- the number of times Management has willfully, knowlingly, and intentionally violated the Contract by asking for a "Doctor's note" when they have no legal right to do so.
The CBA is very specific on this subject. There are exactly 3 times when The Company may require a pilot to provide a written statement from the pilot's physician explaining his ability to perform his assigned duties because of illness or injury. In reverse order (from how they are listed in the CBA):
- When the pilot has requested to use his Disability Sick Account. DSA is an earned benefit -- deferred compensation, if you will -- but we have to get permission to use it.
- Whe the pilot's absence from duty occurred within 24 hours of the beginning or end of his/her vacation period or a "holiday" (Easter, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving, Christmas Eve, New Year's Eve, or New Year's Day)
- (The first two were abbreviated or paraphrased -- here I quote) "The Company has a good faith, and objective reason to question a pilot's use or attempted use of sick leave"
A request for a Doctor's note outside of those 3 criteria is a violation of our contractual rights.
If I use sick leave that's not on those holidays, vacation, or DSA, and The Company asks me for a note, I will first ask them to tell me the "good faith, and objective reason" they're using to question my use of sick leave.
Statistics? How many times has management abrogated our rights by ignoring this important negotiated feature of our CBA?
Originally Posted by
DLax85
Note: The following distributions all have the same average of 5, but are vastly different.
5,5,5,5,5,5,5,5,5,5
0,0,0,0,0,10,10,10,10,10
0,1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10
Since 2008, there have been approximately 971 pilots eligible for retirement and only about 628 have retired --- so in that portion of the pilot distribution alone (Age 60-65), we have seen a net increase of approximately 343 pilots.
Additionally, since April 2008 we have only hired about 304 “new” (presumably younger) pilots --- meaning that the remaining 4,136 pilots (88%) on property are all 5 years older
Bottom line --- instead of comparing the overall “average” age of the crew force, I think it would be more enlightening to compare the percentage of the crew force in each age range --- 60-65, 55-60, 50-55, 45-50, etc
My guess --- this would reveal a greater “aging of the crew force", especially in those year groups (50+) where pilots, and the general population, tend to have an increase in medical issues.
Smokescreen. I enjoy playing with numbers, did well in Statistics, and could talk about this stuff all day. What effect did retiring the B-727 have on our numbers? Your examples are fairly uniform distribuitons of number with the same means, but what about distributions which are biased one direction or another? What happens when you suddenly lose all the over-70 engineers?
What happens to human behavior when you impose an age limit that was never there before? Whereas before a pilot might protect some sick leave in case he needed it at age 66 or 69 or 73, now he knows he has to use it or lose it before 65.
Fun discussions, but all distraction.
Long story short -- statistics will tell a much more complicated story that management wants us to hear, and the story is completely irrelevant. The most important number here is 14.A.6. -- the CBA pragraph which protects your negotiated right to use sick leave without being harrassed.
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