What are my rights and responsibilities for UNA call off's? UNA call off's, also known as 'Unavailable', are a highly controversial subject between Management and the Union. We have been in dispute for years over the Flight Attendant's rights and responsibilities when calling off for reasons other than being ill or injured.
While sick calls are specifically referenced in the contract as absences that may require medical documentation, it does not speak of situations such as car trouble, a sick pet, or any number of other reasons that could cause a Flight Attendant to call off schedule. The reason it doesn't speak of these situations is because Management never proposed it during negotiations, and the Union wouldn't propose it because we aren't in the business of creating restrictions for Flight Attendants.
During the life of this contract, Management has inconsistently required documentation for UNA call offs, and have even gone so far as to contact the FA who has called off UNA and instructed them to report for work or be considered insubordinate.
We had a case with similar circumstances that went before an Arbitrator for a ruling and we just received his decision. While he did not rule on UNA call off's specifically, he did rule against the Flight Attendant who was considered insubordinate for calling off UNA.
For this reason, I have asked our legal counsel for advice for moving forward on this issue. He stated that while we will continue to file grievances on individual discipline received as a result of UNA call off's, to protect our Flight Attendants we recommend the following:
**Flight Attendants should not assume that a UNA call off will only result in the assessment of attendance points.
**Flight Attendants should remember that all conversations with the Company regarding
scheduling issues are recorded.
**Flight Attendants should present a verifiable reason for why they are unavailable on the relevant days of the trip.
**Flight Attendants should accept the Company's offer to adjust their trip length provided that it allows them to meet their obligations on the relevant day or days.
**Flight Attendants should realize that disciplinary action will likely result if they ask to cancel a trip, the Company denies this request, and the Flight Attendant still calls off as unavailable.
Please understand what while the Union believes the Attendance Policy to be a no-fault policy, and even the Company accepts this interpretation, we must work within not only the confines of the contract, but Arbitrator rulings as well. We believe this recent ruling is an advance warning from an Arbitrator that calling off for no reason or a reason that Management doesn't deem as appropriate, will most likely have negative consequences. If you are planning to call of UNA and your reasons are questionable, we recommend that you seek the advice of an experienced Union Rep before doing so.
Next update: If scheduling takes a trip from me and it goes out with another crew, am I pay protected?