But in a way, they did you a favor, because now all those hours are excluded from the 120 hour look back for future verification.

I totally get it’s offensive to those of us who are honest, but as been said, those of us who are honest have nothing to worry about from a GFB call.

 

THEY consider it stealing?! Well, ain't that rich. I consider me having to audit my paycheck stealing..

 

Exclusion from the 120-hour look back has become nearly irrelevant given the prevalence of GFB calls and the numerous common factors that trigger them. For practical purposes, the company has succeeded at turning the 120-hour look back into a 50-hour look back.

 

The problem with that is that GFB calls aren’t actually solving the problem. Dishonest pilots can obtain doctors’ notes just as easily as honest ones. When you agree to give a pilot group 270 hours of sick time, you do so knowing that a small percentage of pilots will take advantage of it. There is no simple way around it, short of hiring private detectives to look into the most egregious cases.

I know someone who recently called out sick for a trip legitimately, then felt better a day later and called in well again. The CPO still called for a GFB the next day, asking the pilot to obtain a doctor’s note for a condition they no longer had. If an honest pilot can obtain a note for a condition they no longer have, then so can a dishonest one.

 

Let’s also not forget how the company lobbied to get an airline carve out to the Minnesota state sick laws. They effectively argued to lawmakers that our sick time is really paid time off. I’m not saying I’m going to press to test on that, but going forward there might be some pilots that take the PTO viewpoint also.

 

Not picking on you, but why is this even a complaint? You break a bone under the old contract, you verify, your slate gets wiped clean for verification. You’re at 0. (New contract if you’re out for 100 hours+ single occurrence and verify, those hours don’t count either, easily a broken bone). On both the old and the new, if you just qualify for disability (you don’t have to take disability, just qualify), those hours don’t count either. Essentially a broken bone means you had 0 hours count towards the verification trigger. You’re a clean slate for sick verification. And if you’re seeing an orthopedist, you hand them the 1 page form and say “can you sign this?” Nature of sick: collarbone injury. Date. Signed Dr Quinn.

I would want to verify my broken bone, GFB or not. Who cares? It’s very likely it would have taken you over the 100 hour old trigger or the 120 new.

Now UHC jerking you around, totally different animal…. They’re a mess.

 

This. This right here. You have identified the cultural problem this management has.

Using a negotiated benefit IS NOT STEALING. The fact that they look at it that way speaks volumes of their heavy handed nature. Maybe that whole "keep your promises" thing? Oh never mind, they took that out.

No wonder the noncons are constantly orchestrating card drives.

 

Without any editorial commentary about the GFB calls, if I call in sick for a trip, I never, ever ever call in well until the footprint of the trip is over and done. I mean, what is the benefit of calling in well the day after you call in sick? Give your body a few days to fully recover.

 

They're a multi-billion dollar company, they have the resources to make it happen, they simply choose not to.



It has nothing to do with having anything to worry about. The fact is, even the "abusers" can easily obtain a note as needed, so it solves nothing in that respect.



Lol right! This...this is where they claim the morale high ground? You're stealing...no fair! But please, please don't look at your checks too closely. You can't make this stuff up.



Say it louder, for those in the back who can't hear as well. If they actually argued that it's effectively PTO, then they're even more hypocritical than I originally thought.




Lol right. Is it stealing when they use right up to the amount (not they they've ever step over, right...I mean keep your deals and all) of JV scope we give them?



On reserve, I've seen guys avoid a for sure assignment by doing that. Call in sick, the guy (senior to you) gets the assignment, call in well before 0600 and only get charged 1 day of sick. Saw this happen last month. I would actually consider that a legit GFB call. Though as stated before, it doesn't really solve anything as the dude will likely have no issue with a note.

 

Interesting that your first assumption is that it was the pilot’s fault. Please don’t ever go into management.

Also as Gspeed noted, it’s hypocritical to apply that logic to reserves as every single line holder sick call is also calling out for a trip they’ve been assigned. It’s even more so now due to covering trips 2 days out. Are you honestly suggesting that reserves should call out sick 3 days prior and if they don’t they should be GFB’d???