Eastern Pilot Council - Quarterly Update
Welcome to another quarterly update from your Eastern Pilot Council! Your representatives recently met with the Company on 29th May and we have a couple of items that were discussed that we wish to update the pilot group on.
EPC Committee Update
Prior to our recent meeting, we were informed that one of our representatives, James Kosenko, had chosen to explore other opportunities outside of Eastern. James was instrumental in the negotiations for the recently approved 2023 EBA with extensive analysis conducted behind the scenes. We all wish James the best for his future endeavours!
In light of this, we are excited to announce that Maddy Bartlett from Melbourne has accepted a casual vacancy with the EPC until the next council election. Maddy is a Q300 Captain and has been with Eastern since 2018. We are very excited to provide another point of contact in Melbourne for pilots needing assistance. Welcome aboard Maddy!
Finally, there is still 1 open position on the EPC if anyone would like to get involved. If interested, please reach out to any of your representatives for further information.
Meals
New meal matrix and metal cutlery
We are pleased to announce that the new meal matrix for all Eastern ports has been approved with the Company and is due for implementation in late June/early July. Due to how the hot meals are rotated with the domestic business offering, the current hot offerings will remain for a period of about 6 months, with a refreshment due later this year. Later this month however, the new lunch main meals, along with new items (across all meal periods) will appear on crew trays.
Some new items that will feature include a danish in addition the croissant on the breakfast trays, a chicken wrap and Koko Black chocolates on the lunch trays, and a larger selection of chips and snacks on the dinner trays, to allow crew to take items with them to the hotel. Also keep an eye out for the refreshed deserts!
In very pleasing news as mentioned in the recent AAB from the Company, we have been successful in obtaining metal cutlery for all tech crew meals. This is something your EPC have been pursuing for a long time and we are thrilled to finally secure this for all our pilots!
Finally, if any pilots have dietary considerations and would like a copy of the allergy matrix, please contact either Tim Anderson or your SBP. Due to Company request, a full copy of the meal matrix is unable to be provided.
Cold breakfast trial in Melbourne
We are now able to confirm that the cold breakfast trial will go-ahead in Melbourne, also due for implementation in late June/early July. As previously described, the trial will consist of 1 hot and 1 cold main meal option for the breakfast period only, and will only apply to flights departing Melbourne.
The trial will last for 3 months from the implementation date, after which the breakfast offering will revert to 2 hot options, aligned with Sydney to allow crew to compare. During this trial, we encourage crew to provide all feedback to Tim Anderson or Shabbir Parek so we can gauge how well it is progressing. Prior to the next meal refreshment later this year, we will also conduct a follow up survey to determine how the pilot group wishes to proceed with the breakfast options in the future.
The meals that will feature in this trial will include a salmon bagel (similar to the Sunstate option in Adelaide), a large ham and cheese croissant, and a chicken, rocket and mayonnaise bagel. The remainder of the tray will always include a fruit salad, a danish, a muesli bar and a chia pudding with fruit and nuts.
New meals form in Comply365
To assist with the tracking of meal issues, the Company have agreed to create a new form on Comply365 called “Crew Meals Feedback.” This form will be sent to both the Company and the EPC meal representative to allow for early intervention of any problems. We encourage all crew to utilise this form, especially when an allowance meal claim is utilised, as the meal allowance form is currently only viewable by the Company and doesn’t allow any EPC oversight.
Phone and Internet Allowances/SAP Concur setup issues
As we approach the end of another financial year, all pilots are reminded to claim their telephone and internet allowances, as provided under clause 40.4 Communication Allowances. These are worth $360 each, total value $720, and are claimable once per financial year and do not rollover.
To claim these allowances, you are required to upload copies of your tax invoices to SAP Concur. These can be claimed both in the one go, with receipts uploaded to their respective sections.
If you are unable to access Concur, there is a “Concur Supplier - Self Set-Up” guide on Comply365, found in the “Your Role” section. Due to how the system is set up, you are required to enter “Sunstate” into the operating unit section, as Sunstate is the paying authority despite being employed by Eastern. This process can take up to a week so if you are not yet set up, we advise you to act quickly. If you continue to have any issues, please contact your SBP who can assist further.
Jeppesen rostering
As recently detailed in an AAB by the Company, we have recently moved to Jeppesen Crew Rostering (JCR) as the pairings building and optimiser for crew rosters. At a high level, there is no significant change to line pilots and crew are still able to enter up to 10 bids across the range of bidding options.
Where JCR differs to the old optimiser is how bids 1-4 are processed, which under the new system should see the vast majority of crew receiving these bids, along with a higher overall bid success for lower bids due to how the system operates. Generally, deviations from this will only occur when crew have a run of days off issues, or where multiple crew bid for certain pairings with only a small handful available e.g. only 1x 3-day trip available but multiple crew place it as bid #1.
As always, your rostering representatives will be checking each roster prior to publication for any compliance issues or opportunities to improve bid success.
Payment for pilots working on DO or U/A days
We have recently been asked why the “Work RDO” payment on payslips is what it is, how that figure has been obtained, and why it isn’t necessarily “double time.” The “Work RDO” payment is covered in clause 41.9 and clause 41.9.3 specifically dictates how this rate is calculated. The calculation is found below and we hope this clarifies things!
41.9.3 The hourly rate is established by taking the sum of Annual Salary plus additions (in clause 33.6) divided by 46 divided by 30. The rate paid will be for each full duty hour worked and shall be pro-rated at 15 minute intervals for each part of an hour worked beyond the last full hour.
We are also aware of another issue occurring with part-time pilots who are requested to work on an non-work/unavailable (U/A) day. Previously crew were being paid in a similar style to the “Work RDO” clause listed above, however this is not is what is specified in the EBA clause 15.5.2 which states
15.5.2 A part time pilot may be requested by the Company to work on a non-work day. Where a part time pilot agrees to work on a non-work day payment shall be at the single time rate of pay.
What the Company have recently been doing is paying pilots the hourly rate specified on their payslip under “Normal” hours, for the actual number of hours worked, with no minimum engagement period.
The view of the EPC is that the single time rate should be paid for 8.9 hours (the number of hours a day is now defined as) regardless of the number of hours worked and that DHA/DHAA is payable on the actual time worked. The EPC and Company discussed this at the recent meeting and further clarification has been sought. In the meantime, we advise any part-time pilots who are requested to work on a U/A to consider this information and to decline the duty if they feel they will not be adequately compensated for their time.
Flight Pulse
Your EPC representatives have been involved in testing with the new Flight Pulse app, which has been green-lit for release to the whole of Eastern pilots in the near future. During the testing period, your EPC representatives have considered the data available, and due to the scope of information presented, will be in talks with both the Sunstate Pilot Council and the Company prior to its release.
While the Company have reassured us that data is confidential and only individual data is available to pilots, there are still concerns regarding some information not being appropriate which we would like to see modified prior to release. This is generally relating to individual, pilot flying (PF) metrics that should not be visible to the pilot monitoring (PM). Rest assured, your representatives have your privacy in mind and are ensuring that this data doesn’t overstep the FOQA deed that has previously been agreed to.
Command Standards Assessment/CRP Representatives
The Company have notified the EPC that they are seeking two (2) additional pilot representatives for the Command Review Panel (CRP). The CRP’s role is detailed in clause 61 of the EBA, however its primary function is to assess a FO who is approaching command eligibility for their “readiness for command” and any training that may benefit an FO prior to their upgrade. The role will mainly involve conducting interviews and assessing HF/NTS skills.
This role exists outside of the EPC, and you are not required to be an EPC representative if you wish to get involved. If this is something you are interested in, please get in touch with any of your EPC representatives so we can forward your nomination to the Company. No previous experience is necessary and the role is open to pilots across all bases and fleets.
Conclusion
Thank you for taking the time to read this update. If you have any further questions or feedback please contact any of your EPC representatives below. As always, safe and happy flying from your EPC!
Your Eastern Council:
Nathan Hayes (Chair/Rostering/Accommodation) 0415 290 634
Ben Moss (Vice Chair/Technical) 0448 334 135
Tim Anderson (Secretary/Meals) 0447 813 447
Shabbir Parek (Welfare)
Brendan Quaife (Welfare)
Jess Chong (Rostering)
Maddie Bartlett
In addition to your Council Committee member there is AFAP staff member Chris Aikens on chris@afap.org.au. The AFAP Member Assistance Program (MAP) can be contacted via Freecall 1300 307 912.