Miss M
One of the problems that EG300 has caused is that many non-flying staff now report for work when they have anything from a snuffle to something approaching full blown flu. The effect is that they cheerfully spread the germs amongst colleagues, who then succumb to the same infection. I have been known to send team members home if I felt that they were likely to affect the health of colleagues. Now I can see that things like colds can have nasty effects on the eardrums, hence the reason that cabin crew who get one don't fly and also why there were variations put in EG300 for cabin crew. Oddly enough, no-one in the teams I have led in the past fifteen to twenty years at BA has thrown a sickie to watch Wimbledon, go to Royal Ascot, or just not fancied working over Xmas. Anecdotal evidence suggests that this is not true of cabin crew.
7000 cabin crew went on strike. Isn't it time that we were a little realistic about the figures ? 7000 cabin crew did not lose staff travel perks at least not according to BA. Moreover, 7000 cabin crew did not go on strike for 22 days. I reckon that in total the figure was more like 5000, of which many may only have gone on strike for 3 or 4 days at the most. That way they could claim to have supported the union, whilst also ensuring that their own paychecks were not hit badly. Had 5000 staff walked off the job for the full 22 days
a) the strikes would have had a far greater impact than they did
b) Unite would not have considered it necessary to up the ante on strike pay.
The CEO has not split the workforce between cabin crew and the rest of the staff, that was something that the union reps managed to do by not entering into the spirit of the cost saving exercises. Had cabin crew got stuck in early and dealt with BA management on a deal to reduce costs, they would not be in the present situation. Instead, they prevaricated and were the last bargaining group to enter into negotiations, and they still haven't settled.
I can see that working with volunteers is not an easy position to be in. They may not put up with the same sort of banter that is part of the normal crew way of working. They may feel that you are putting their performance under a microscope, but then that in part is down to some of the particularly unpleasant rhetoric on various forums that has been directed at VCCs. Comments like 'heaven help BA if there is an incident that involves VCCs' and prefering to copulate with a member of the baggage handling fraternity than a VCC spring to mind as two examples. With such hostile attitudes it is unsurprising that a lot of cabin crew feel they may be walking on eggshells when dealing with VCCs and are fearful of being accused of bullying. Again, you only have the individuals within your community who propagate such views to blame.
Finally, I have worked for a number of companies doing a job I was passionate about. If they failed to recognise my value I went and found a new employer. Admittedly, at the time I was learning my craft, so my earnings were not that high and I could easily pick up a similar salary elsewhere, however, even now I know that if I felt that BA were taking the mickey, then despite having over 20 years invested in the company. I would cheerfully find another employer. The only real draw is that I would be unlikely to find one that offered a final salary pension.