I never understand aswell how we cannot do a NCE link for domestic nighstops.
The only reason why you can't do it is because BASSA will say no if the company asks, even if the crew wanted it because it would give them an extra day off per month. Pilots do things like a LYS-LHR-BEG-LHR day, so I'm sure a NCL-LHR-NCE-LHR isn't out of the question.
Ben Asher
shall we leave these issues to scheduling?
This is part of the 'blame someone else / not my aisle' problem (not aimed at you directly). Yes, it is an issue for scheduling, because their hands are tied by BASSA agreements that are not good for the company, and not good for crew in some cases, and to refuse down right to change anything just as a matter of course is the exact behaviour that has got you all in to this mess in the first place.
If BASSA
listened to their members, which would possibly involve actually asking crew what
they want, things like linking a NCE to a NCL might be acceptable to crew, or even desirable (ie, if I'm going to be at work that day, may as well make some cash / do it now and have an extra day off), could be used to
negotiate with the company. Ie, 'hey Bill, we will do this, and it will save you £10m, how about we split it 50/50 and put £5m in to a 'long link payment' and you keep the other £5m towards our target.
Rather than look at all these endless inefficiencies as 'someone else's problem / department', your union could be actively looking at ways around them to get a mutual advantage for you
and BA. There are so many painless ways to save money and protect your pay, that is why this conflict is such a waste in so many ways, and why anyone with half a brain feels totally let down by La La lady and her kitchen fitting mates. I just hope people realise in time how this could have been done.