Update on IT Issue Impacting Reserve Screens

Update on IT Issue Impacting Reserve Screens
On the evening of August 25th, the MEC Reserve Committee became aware of an issue impacting the Reserve Availability and Reserve Assigned screens in CCS.

Throughout the day yesterday, and again today, the Reserve Committee was in contact with management as research on the issue continued. We were able to gain a better understanding of how this would affect Reserve Flight Attendants and what fixes could be deployed. As of last night, with the involvement of United’s Automation and Digital Technology divisions, it became evident that the company would not be able to make the necessary corrections in a timely manner.

To be clear, each hour the company is unable to make available the information on the two (2) screens is a violation of the Agreement. For years, AFA leadership has advocated to management that the aging system will not be able to support our growing Flight Attendant population and that it is past time to invest in the necessary upgrades to their technology.

Through Union advocacy, we have been able to compel management to prioritize this issue and collaborate to provide a necessary solution connecting Flight Attendants to the information they  need to make informed decisions. From the notifications in CCS apprising Flight Attendants to an IT issue, to gaining access and approvals to share the most current Reserve Availability lists possible, we continue to stand as one in defense of the JCBA.

Reserve Flight Attendants, what do you need to know? (FAQs)

• Is the Reserve Preferencing system still working? The Reserve Preferencing portal and automated assignment process that occurs each evening is not impacted by this issue.
• Do schedulers have access to the Reserve Availability list? Are Reserves being assigned in the correct order? Yes, schedulers have regained access to the uCrew Availability list which populates the information presented on the CCS Reserve Availability list. Reserves are being assigned in the correct order.
• Are Ready Reserve preferences being honored? Reserves are still ordered by days of availability, TMAC, FIFO and seniority. Ready Reserve preferences for co-terminals, maximum flying (RTF), no preference (RNP), Standby (RSB) and minimum flying (RMF) are also considered, as well as any preferences entered to volunteer to be assigned into days off (RV1/RV2).
• How will Reserves be able to see their position on the Reserve list while work on a fix continues? As described below, the company will be providing screenshots of the availability list throughout the day for each base. These screenshots will be posted on the United AFA website.
• How often will the screenshots of the Reserve Availability screen be updated? The screenshots will be updated three (3) times per day, as shown below. As they are only screenshots of the list, minute by minute changes will not be captured.

Reserve Availability Lists on UnitedAFA.org
Reserve Flight Attendants have a Contractual right to see their position on the availability list. While the technology improvements that are required to correct these issues will likely take several more days, we made clear to management that it was imperative to find an interim solution in the short-term that provides Reserves with as much visibility as possible, as quickly as possible.

To that end, the MEC Leadership along with the Reserve, Digital Technology and  Communications Committees have worked with management to set up a temporary protocol for AFA to receive, publish and house screenshots of the Reserve Availability lists on our official Union website.

Two (2) availability list screenshots per base will be published three (3) times a day, as follows:

• 0700 HDT: Current-day Ready Reserve list and Next-day Reserve Preferencing list.
• 1400 HDT: Current-day Ready Reserve list and Next-day Reserve Preferencing list.
• 1930 HDT: Current-day Ready Reserve list and Next-day Ready Reserve list.

The lists will be published on unitedafa.org by base/satellite base location. This information will be housed behind the member login in the secure section of our website. If you have not accessed the secure section on unitedafa.org please review the directions and support below.

Secure Access on UnitedAFA.org
As a reminder, our AFA website uses MemberLink account credentials. If you have already set up a MemberLink account from Member.UnitedAFA.org (used to file Local Council Worksheets and update addresses), you can use that login for the website.

If you have not yet created an account, you will need to do so to access certain non-public areas of our website where the Reserve Lists will be housed.

If you are unsure as to whether you have a MemberLink account, search in your personal email for an email from memberlink@unitedafa.org with the subject "AFA MemberLink - Confirm Your Email."

If you did not receive an email:
It is unlikely that you have a MemberLink account. Please Click Here to register. Please check that you are entering your file number with No "U," and no leading zeros. Unfortunately, United does not share preferred names with AFA, so please use your full legal first & last name(s).

If you did receive an email, but cannot log in, please Click Here to self-reset your password.

If you are having issues registering or entering your account visit our support site here.