Computer rostering is great at picking the random crew for flights, and looks fine on paper and in theory. Everyone has a nice plan for the month that (in theory) will work.
However, the thing that will always make rosters change is the human factor - ie crews going sick, FTLs etc (and before I get slated for insinuating crews should never go sick - I'm not !).
Crewing then have the unenviable task of filling the sick or out of hours crew members position, often with little notice and possibly a tight ATC slot, which is not ideal for the replacement crew member either. Early morning callout, extra sectors, a/c swaps, delays will all weigh heavily on the crews morale especially if this happens regularly.
Crews should also remember - and this isn't meant to sound patronising - that ops / crewing have the 'bigger picture' of what is happening fleet-wide for not just that day, but several days in advance, and the knock on effects of the problem in hand, whereas the poor crew are naturally just concerned about what is happening to them at that particular moment.
This is one of the biggest causes of roster disruption, and I can't see anyway round it - unless our bosses are going to provide us with loads of spare a/c and loads of standby crews to sit around the airport 'just in case' - unfortunately I can't see that hapening !
[This message has been edited by ghost-rider (edited 12 December 1999).]