Just wanted to state my disapproval of the union's recent move to get our long overnight back into the Krystal Reforma. I have stayed in the Krystal Reforma several nights, and now the Hilton Sante Fe. I have been in dirty rooms at the Reforma, and personally don't care for the area. The Hilton Sante Fe (although perhaps not technically "core downtown" is in a much better area physically (on a hill out of the smog), and sits atop a large shopping mall with plenty of food options, and is much more comfortable. What am I missing?? Why is being in the "core downtown" more important than our comfort?

 

What was the response on the PDR that you filed?

 

Excellent riposte.

Perhaps the company made the decision?
Did you call the hotel peeps?
Do you wear a pin?

 

Not trying to be jerk (some say it just comes naturally). The original post does't pass the sniff test, how dare someone come on this forum and complain.

My point is that there are volumes of updates and guidance on crew layover hotels with the punchline being: "if your layover hotel doesn't provide the opportunity to get adequate crew rest - walk and find suitable lodging!"

Is it inconvenient to walk - yes.
Is it a PIA on International layovers - yes.
Do you have to pay up front and submit an expense report - yes.

However, that feeling of certifying "fit to fly" is priceless!

Seriously dude, write a PDR, post the reply.

 

The Krystal is being renovated which is why we left there, so they are not trying to change it back. They are trying to get moved to the Hilton reforma.

The Santa Fe hilton is one of the nicest ive been to, but the drive is awful. Gridlock almost the entire way. Driver said that it can be two hours sometimes...no thanks. I'll take reforma

 

I am a new hire, and should have no problem passing the "sniff test", as you put it...I wear a pin...the half wing. I have no idea what a PDR is, and am just stating my opinion that the "core downtown" hotel is not as good as the new hotel that the company put us up in. It is just my opinion, and was hoping to guage other opinions....not assaults. Thank you.

 

PDR is a pilot data report that's routed to the appropriate union committee. At a macro level PDRs are key to recording data points to counter company claims that a problem doesn't exist. At an individual level, PDRs will get you a personal response from an ALPA volunteer. It's a great resource, please use it.

https://www.alpa.org/AlpaLogin/tabid...3ftabid%3d5709

As mentioned above, the company sometimes unilaterally moves crews to a non-approved hotel, or won't broadcast the reason for the approved change (both good reasons to use the PDR).

Finally, welcome aboard! It's been a decade of yelling at each other, it's good to finally have someone new to yell at! (Just kidding, seriously, welcome aboard and please keep asking questions).

 

Thanks for the info, CRM114. It's nice to have a voice. I will file a PDR tomorrow. As a new hire, and a reserve pilot, I spend a lot of nights in MEX, and would much rather take a few extra minutes to go to a nice hotel in a nice place. Thanks again!!

 

IMHO, the larger issue faced by the Hotel Committee here is not necessarily MEX.

As background, the hotel contract language is mostly carried over from the L-UAL contract and thus is backed by years of past practice and previous grievance wins. The union, from a legal perspective, must defend the "downtown" language consistently or risk losing the power of the section under the Byzantine rules-of-engagement of the Railway Labor Act.

This is not to suggest that the "new" hotel is necessarily better than the existing one (I have not been to MEX in ages) but there are machinations constantly occurring under the surface that the Hotel Committee is trying to stop.

That said, fill out a detailed PDR. There are obviously many hotels in MEX that are in a "downtown" area and pilot friendly. And as with anything dealing with UCH, it's all about $$$ and the Hotel Committee needs ammunition for their arguments.

 

I am glad the Union forced the issue. The Reforma district is very nice with several very nice hotels in the area. But most importantly raising the BS flag to the Company continuously testing the contractual boundaries at our expense. These middle managers suck big time.

As for the hew hire (assuming you're not some management troll or wannabe troll) ****!


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