A quick question...
 

Hi guys and gals, could one of you answer a question I have?

My wife is an agency nurse, working all over the country, and she worked yesterday afternoon with a chap who said that he was a hostie for a major British airline.

According to him he had come back from Milan on an AM sector, got home, phoned the agency and booked himself onto a shift at the same hospital in the afternoon.

He said that he did this a lot as he got about 10 days off a month from the airline and this bumped his wages considerably.

My question is aren't you guys limited to what you can do on your days off with regards to rest time, 2nd jobs etc, as we in ATC are? Would the airline be aware of this situation?

I realise that you guys do an important and tiring job in terms of safety, and my wife does an important and tiring job in terms of nursing, so the thought of someone doing both and burning the proverbial candle strikes me as being a little bit silly....

Thoughts appreciated.

Not sure what the rules are where you are, but in New Zealand we can do what ever we like with our days off. I know a couple of people that nurse before, after or inbetween flying shifts.

I even know people that have a casual flying job on a scenic flight DC-3 on days off. These people just have to watch their CAA regulation maximum flying hours.

:)

With one major british airline I know of, you have to get permission from the employer to hold a second job or declare an outside interest in a charity, etc. If denied by the employer you would be subject to a disciplinary if you continue with the other work, and if permitted to take on the other job, the individual is responsible for their health and welfare, and the agreement stands that their primary employment (with the airline) is of higher importance and the staff member must act responsibly. If at any point they suffer from fatigue or ill health as a result, or if its intefering with the airline contract of employment or safe operation, the situation is reassessed and a decision is made to either cease or reduce one or other employment.

We are forbidden from having a second job in our contracts, for the reason that we will not have enough rest to operate safely if we are working in our rest periods. One girl was fired for breaking this rule 3 years ago at my airline.

When working full time for a regional airline in NSW Australia, I used to nurse twice a month, casually. I asked our cheif pilot first before starting and he said it was fine as long as I didn't over do it and put my casual nursing position before my full time flying position. Now that I have returned to nursing and packed up my tea and coffee pots for good, I am glad that I maintained casual nursing employment to keep my skills up.