Published: Monday, Mar. 4, 2013 - 8:58 am
WASHINGTON, March 4, 2013 --
/PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- CitationAir, the Greenwich, Conn.-based
provider of luxury business jet and charter aircraft services, radically
altered the work schedules of the company's nearly 230 pilots who are
represented by the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, Airline
Division, Local 1108. CitationAir is wholly owned by Cessna Aircraft
Company, which in turn is wholly owned by Textron Inc., a
major U.S. defense contractor. The Teamsters and CitationAir management
have been in negotiations over a first contract for the pilots since
Nov. 2011.
Prior
to the change on March 1, CitationAir scheduled pilots to be available
for duty seven consecutive workdays during each two-week period.
Management's new schedule pattern now requires pilots to be available
for duty eight consecutive workdays during each two-week period for an
increase of 26 more workdays per year.
During each workday, a pilot can be required to remain on duty for 14
hours straight, with only 10 hours off the job before again reporting
to fly. Management recently rejected efforts by the Teamsters to
implement protections preventing the company from scheduling a pilot for
nine or more consecutive workdays without his or her concurrence.
"The
typical U.S. worker has a five-day workweek that keeps him or her on
the job 20 days a month, not counting holidays. Assuming eight-hour
shifts, that worker puts in about 160 hours a month," said Capt. Mat
Slinghoff, Local 1108 President. "In contrast, CitationAir could
conceivably require a pilot to be at work 252 hours, or more, during a
single month. Furthermore, pilots do not get holidays off—they work in a
365/24/7 business."
"CitationAir is requiring pilots to work 26
additional days per year, effectively for free," said Capt. David
Bourne, Teamsters Airline Division Director. "Management will be keeping
pilots on the road away from their homes and families nearly one full
month each year against their will for no additional compensation. This
type of abusive scheduling practice can only contribute to pilot
fatigue, which has been proven to negatively impact aviation safety."
"In
an effort to cut costs, our pilots and their schedules were targeted.
CitationAir's move will severely impact the quality of life of our
pilots and their families," said Teamsters General President James
Hoffa. "The International Brotherhood of Teamsters stands with these
dedicated professional pilots and those that depend on them for safe air
travel."
Local 1108 is part of the Teamsters Airline Division and
represents more than 700 pilots employed by CitationAir and Cleveland,
Ohio-based Flight Options LLC, which is also a provider of luxury
business jet and charter aircraft services. The Teamsters Airline
Division represents about 80,000 workers in all segments of commercial
aviation. The International Brotherhood of Teamsters was founded in
1903 and represents more than 1.4 million hardworking men and women in
the United States, Canada and Puerto Rico.
SOURCE Teamsters Local Union 1108
http://www.marketwatch.com
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