Wall Street Journal article on EK crewing problem.
 

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http://www.pprune.org/middle-east/55...-sow-ek-5.html

Here it is:

DUBAI—Emirates Airline is fighting an unusual headwind: labor trouble.

In the U.S. and Europe, the Dubai-owned carrier, the world’s largest international airline by traffic, is fighting accusations by rivals that it benefits from unfair government subsidies. Back home in Dubai, however, it is engaged in a rare tussle with its own cabin-crew staff.

According to current and former staff, cabin-crew employees have been complaining internally about a host of issues, including accusations the airline is asking crew to work more hours and shortening layovers between connecting flights. In response, Emirates is hosting a series of unprecedented meetings where staff can air grievances directly to senior management. It also recently suspended a performance-evaluation system of cabin staff—conducted after each flight—that employees complained was too critical.

Labor trouble is a frequent headache for global carriers, where strikes and other job action can lead to disrupted service. But in Dubai, a semiautonomous monarchy that is part of the United Arab Emirates, strikes and unions are banned. Emirates has long been a demanding employer, especially for cabin-crew personnel—requiring rigorous training, including in etiquette and grooming.
ENLARGE
An Emirates Airbus A380 flies above rooftops as it comes in to land at London’s Heathrow Airport. PHOTO: AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE/GETTY IMAGESBut cabin-crew staff also enjoy benefits not typical at many other airlines, including free accommodation and transportation to and from work. That has all helped keep a lid on open labor strife among its roughly 20,000 cabin-crew employees—at least until now. The dissent comes as the airline is growing rapidly and trying to recruit aggressively to fill its cabins. Emirates carried 44.5 million passengers in its last financial year, and forecasts 70 million passengers by 2020.
It plans to hire 5,000 more cabin staff this year, to accommodate growth and attrition. That fast clip is straining current staff, according to some employees.
Flight attendants say they are having to work more shifts, with shorter layovers. First-class attendants, who typically work their way up to their postings in premium cabins, are being asked to work in economy to make up for shortages there, according to these employees. Many cabin-crew staff had some annual leave allocation deferred last year, they said.

‘There are a number of subjects that are causing concern at the moment’
—Terry Daly, Emirates’ senior vice president of service delivery, in an email to staff.
Emirates said in a statement that it hasn’t shortened layover times, and any changes to staff routines are exceptions that comply with safety rules. Staff have to work in other cabins at times, the carrier said. Emirates didn’t immediately respond to a request seeking comment about deferred leave.

The company also declined to comment generally about cabin-crew complaints, and it declined to make executives available to comment for this article. Saif Al Suwaidi, director general of the General Civil Aviation Authority, the U.A.E.’s airline regulator, said issues about airline labor conditions are a matter to be sorted out between staff and management.

The new gripe sessions announced earlier this year are one way Emirates is trying to manage the complaints. In an email in January to staff announcing the meeting, Terry Daly, Emirates’ senior vice president of service delivery, wrote he was “aware that there are a number of subjects that are causing concern at the moment.” He called the meetings “an opportunity to talk about these directly with me,” according to a copy of the email reviewed by The Wall Street Journal.

Emirates has held three sessions so far. The first meeting, held last month at Emirates’ Dubai headquarters, dragged on for double the scheduled two hours, according to three attendees. In a statement, Emirates said the forums last month were just one of many ways employees could communicate with management. “We have always encouraged open dialogue,” the carrier said.

Emirates Chief Executive Tim Clark has recently weighed in. Late last year, he started to send a quarterly “update” email to employees, soliciting feedback from staff. But he also warned about gossip mongering: “I’m astonished by the range of colorful stories that sometimes do the rounds in our company,” he wrote in October. His advice, he continued, according to a copy of the email reviewed by the Journal, is to “keep well away from naysayers and gossips and focus instead on our ambition to be one of the most loved lifestyle brands.”

Write to Rory Jones at [email protected]

Perhaps Mr. Jones would like to have a look at some of the complaints on this site with regard to issues the pilots are facing at "the worlds most loved brand".

Perhaps our management would make available to Mr Jones the results of the recent Employee Survey?

Hello RORY....here's my STORY!

Tip of the iceberg
 

Of course Rory Jones is not even revealing the tip of the iceberg since he lives in Dubai and works for the Abu Dhabi office of the WSJ. Nowhere is he mentioning Dragana's site although he is clearly a reader.

But it is a start to put the labour and safety issues on the table especially in the U.S.

Interesting read on freedom of speech in the UAE:
Interviewing the NYU Prof Banned From the UAE -- NYMag

Found this too...interview between Rory and TC

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oDXORhEbJfo

@ 29:40 STC makes in interesting comment re: social media.

Lets hope he fixes any in house problems as fast as he reacts to changes in tech as he states.


https://youtu.be/VjHePahW7Os

It is about time someone or some entity investigates EK. I can't believe the word hasn't been heard outside the Middle East before.

That article will be fully exploited by the subsidy gang including the all powerful ALPA PAC.

The sad thing is - nothing about the article is untrue.

Wagons starting to circle methinks / or noose tightening?

The shortsightedness of it all is - if there is an accident/ incident & fatigue a factor and it shows that the rules were bent to make a few extra bucks ... the lawyers better be good.

Because the insurance companies swill tell the carrier :

"wait a second - you told us they didn't start work until an hour before push back per OMA - which is absolutely not the case. You have voided your cover, adios"

Someone upstairs needs to wake up.

f.

Thank you Wall St. Journal....
 

Well done Rory, well written, and about time someone picked up this story.

Post GermanWings crash, how soon before our very own pilot-friendly company psychology department (irony there folks..) starts to enjoy an ever-increasing ability to mess with people's careers? They'll be out to assess just how serially depressed, upset and generally p***ed off the majority of EK pilots are - and guess what, they'll be right. They'd best be careful just how far they start to probe, and just what they wish to look at.....

You don't have to be nuts to fly in the Middle East, but it sure helps!

Mr. Rory picked up this story long time ago. It's just that picking up the story is not enough in the conditions where everyone is afraid to speak up and testify about the truth.

I guess that Mr.Rory finally found someone to speak with, but it was a bloody job I suppose.

Passive waiting for someone to pick up the story is not enough. If you want something to change or your voice to be heard, writing on PPRuNE is not enough. It's actually very far from enough.

This article will be just the tip of the iceberg if the news media decides to follow it. There are more than enough ex-EK pilots who are willing to talk that, should the media be willing, they will have more than enough 'proof'.

I've said before that should EK have an accident that the Guardian or the US tv show 60 Minutes would have a PANEL of 15 or 20 ex EK pilots talking about the issues.

Now, even without an accident, it is starting to brew. With ALPA and the US airlines looking to slow EK etc. this might just blow up.

I'd also contend that the unmentionable airline might not be too happy that EK's shenanigans (too put it politely) might cause them some issues.

"though it called those speaking out an unhappy “vocal minority.” " (WSJ Article)

not really...judging by my experience with colleagues on the line this past year...

Interesting times ahead.......

Indeed Emirates management has abused, alienated and overworked its pilot group, from its junior FO to its senior TRE, one only needs to be on the line to know this.
Above all Emirates management has routinely, consistently, systematically lied to this dedicated workforce, eventually braking the thrust bond.
Emirates shouldn't have broken the thrust bond with its most critically safety sensitive workforce!
This is a Muslim country but these people seem drunk our their own success story.
These visionary leaders should know better...
There will be one day, sooner or later, in some shape or format a hefty price to pay.
They have just gone to far....and the general public most know
Hate the cliche but, if you think safety is expensive...

Well done WSJ

Humpty

Very interesting indeed...

Dont kid yourself - you get the same complaints about mismanagement at every major airline in the world, there is nothing special about EK. T&C's throughout the industry have been dropping since Carter deregulated the US in '78.

Yes conditions and even pay did drop for awhile but now with the current pilot shortage the pilots are getting back what they lost but at a slower pace than we would like.
I haven't heard the same complaints from pilots at the legacy airlines. They have complaints but those complaints are so different from we as Emirates pilots have. They complain when they work 12 days a month or don't get an extra 7 days off after their vacation. We think it is a good month when we are "only" rostered 90 hours a month.
It does make many a sane man wonder why EK is doing what they are doing to us. Turning the screws on us when most pilots can and want to leave to better opportunities.
Maybe with this WSJ article things will change. The article didn't even real touch on the real issues effecting Emirates pilots, rostering patterns and hours worked. I don't think things will change unless something serious happens. The media couldn't be bothered and the public just doesn't care.

jetII,
If you have been in the industry for awhile, you will know of downs and highs. Right now the industry is skyrocketing, specially in the U.S., China and elsewhere. Some places not so much. But EK has publicaly said it will report its highest profits in its almost 30 years of its existence. Will our "temporary" 92 hours reduce? NO Will overtime (productivity) be allowed? NO Will al pilots be awarded their contracted 42 days of leave? NO Will pilots get monthly credit for ground schools, sim sessions, or any required CBT? NO Do I need to continue? NO Except to say, compensation was not mentioned by this poster. We will know in a week or two whether or not EK is serious about IT'S commitment towards the employees

When the industry has been down, the EK siren song was enticing. Not so much now when looking at industry profit shares, pay rises, etc. Take a look at a legacy U.S. wide body international pilot's schedule/roster. You would be shocked at what an EK pilot's roster would look like in comparison.

EK prides itself in being an industry leader, but refuses to acknowledge the contributions all of its employees, except for a few meaningless emails.

Well said. T. U!

A colleague of mine showed me a roster he had obtained of a 777. It was not really believable compared to what EK forces upon us each and every month. It looked like part time work, yet had about 80 hours of flying. Something like 10 days of actual fly.

Wow...!

Just to throw something in the mix...it's been about 5 weeks now since I did my last flight. Sitting at home, the biggest pressure I have not had is counting down the days until I return to Dubai, as I always did while on leave.

The other thing I have found, is how much better I feel, sleeping when then sun is down, being awake when then sun is up.

And the removal of the 'EK stress' hard to explain, unless you work for EK. The constant feeling....you are only as good as your last sector...

There is a lot to fix, a big bonus IMHO do that...there is so much wrong now, so much ingrained in management it may never get fixed..beating those that remain certainly won't help...

Given the airline's and countries past history - including suspected wiretaps on employee phones in the distant past and insistence on access to mobile phone encryption protocols, is it any wonder that any anonymous reporting systems are treated with the utmost suspicion?

The regulator DOES allow flight-time factoring - a dubious practice wherein time not spent at the controls is not counted towards flight time limits. Anyone who has actually flown ULR (not the management at EK) will tell you that all time in the aircraft contributes to fatigue levels. Very few countries in the world allow this practice.

The airline often quotes the existence of a "Fatigue Reporting Monitoring System" yet time and time again; flights are originally scheduled with insufficient rest, facilities or crew. Only after an influx of fatigue reports is any change made to the pairing. Then, almost identical pairings are scheduled, again insufficiently, requiring the requisite 6 to 12 months worth of fatigue reports before any changes are made. The cynicism of the system in practice is evident to any familiar with it. The reporter should contact the EK doctor who set up the FRMS (no longer employed at EK) to find out how the Fatigue Reduction Monitoring Committee at EK works in practice.

.
Whether those speaking out are a minority or a majority is certainly open to debate. What isn't, is that for years, the only response from Emirates management to any displays of discontent or even concern has been; "if you don't like it, leave".

It is obvious that Emirates management and Mr. Al Redha himself consider increasing levels of pilot productivity as a bottomless well from which to continuously fish for increased profits WITHOUT considering the consequences on safety or morale. There are not many airlines in the world that are consistently scheduling their flight crews to the levels that Emirates is and none that are their direct competitors.

Hi, a question,
those 90+ hours, do they include hours in the crewrest? Someone told me rest hours on augmented crew are deducted at EK? Can't imagine that is allowed for FTL calculations.
Sorry, just a curious colleague..

TangoUniform
 

I was wondering what to say?
You pretty much covered it.
I guess the biggest thing I've taken from the WSJ article is AR lying.
The fact that they lie to us is one thing but this is an all time low.
Other than that I'm shocked at the lack of response.
No wonder Emirates is getting away with the despicable way they treat their staff.

GYS, the 90+ hrs does include crew rest time (but not ground duties and simulator or time spent on reserve/standby). We also get flight pay for the crew rest time. However, it does not count towards the flight time limitations for 30 days or 365 days.

Most of you chaps are completely misguided in your anger toward EK management. They are no different from management in any airline around the world. The difference is the laws of the land you have chosen to live in. The same laws that give you your tax free salary, cheap maids, cheap cars, cheap fuel and expat lifestyle.

It would appear that by acceptance, most of you approve of the exploited labor that builds your villa's and cleans them for you, cleans your car, serves you at Spinneys etc, but when it is your turn to be kicked in the nuts it is unacceptable.

As can be demonstrated by the issues raised at United, management in first world countries would be doing the same if it were not for the laws of those countries that give workers rights, and allow them to stand up for them without persecution.

I find it amusing that some on this forum who accepted the poisoned chalice of EK are rooting for airlines in other countries to force better conditions in the UAE. You probably have no real idea how ludicrous it sounds to outsiders when someone who is not prepared to fight their own battles expects someone else to do it for them.

I have done my time at Emirates and now spend my time fighting for better conditions with the support of unions, equitable labor laws and my colleagues. My management is no different from yours, it is just that I can sit across the table from mine and hold them accountable when they do something that is not consistent with our contracts. I can also lobby the government for changes if necessary and I pay a high price for that privilege in the form of tax.

So if you are not happy with the laws of your adopted country, give up your tax free lifestyle and return to the first world but please stop deluding yourselves that you are any different from the man in blue overalls picking up the rubbish on the beach. All workers in the UAE are a resource to be exploited. You guys are just some of the higher paid ones.

Not a bad comment 6100.

The only thing i miss in your contribution is the safety aspect. I accept the poisoned chalice metaphor concerning T&C's with the impossibility of fighting cynical greed with unions and against a corrupt regulator as long as it does not touch outright safety.

But please accept that a big part of our plight in the ME, and the major reason of hoping for more articles like this one, is in the name of safety for crew and passengers, not simply for money.

It would have been worth mentioning in your lecture. :(

6100, you are correct. We just have better uniforms, sort of, and at least for the pilots, a better mode of transportation to work. And you accurately describe "their" attitude towards their minions.

There is a slight difference though. The rubbish collecter is not charged with a billion dollar/dirham asset. The cost of the a/c, the liabilities cost, the shinning jewel of Dubai, and the reputation of a worldwide corporation. Those in charge of this place need to understand that they cannot achieve their goals without a motivated and content workforce, especially in a service business.

But it' snot just the pilots, as you know. But be careful, my friend, in putting all your hopes and dreams in your Union. If need be, YOUR Union will chew you up and spit you out, just like management if it suits their aim..but better having a voice than none at all. Time and time again, unions around the world have turned their backs on their members. And that is worse than an abusive management. Ask the Americans why many of them arrived at the ME airlines, and a great majority will say because their union thought it better to not listen to their concerns. Happens a lot my friend. But again, you do have the ability to influence the wanna be managers (lifetime union reps).

But please, even though you say you spent your turn in the barrel here, save that old cliche, love it or leave it.

This is what the UAE CAR OPS says, freely available on the GCAA website:


CAR-OPS 1.1125 Absolute Limits on Flying Hours (a) No person shall act as an operating crew member of the flight crew of an aircraft if at the beginning of the flight the aggregate of all his previous flight times;

(1) during the period of 28 (twenty eight) consecutive days expiring at the end of the day on which the flight begins exceeds 100 (one hundred) block hours: or during the period of 12 (twelve months) expiring at the end of the previous month exceeds 900 (nine hundred) block hours:

Two pages before you can find the definition of operating crew member:

a crew member carrying out his/her duties in an aircraft during a flight .

There is no reference whatsoever to bunk time not counting towards those hours. However, our bosses claim that because the OMA is signed off by the GCAA, everything that is in there is "legal". I'm not a lawyer, but something doesn't smell right. EK knows it, the GCAA knows it but as they both have the same boss, nothing will change. Only pressure from other legislators might do, but don't hold your breath....

But announcing record profits is a meaningless statement, it is simply publicity puff - the airline is bigger than it has ever been so if we were not seeing record profits then something would be seriously wrong. A more pertinent measure would be the size of the profit margin, if you know this then you can make a judgement on how well the company is doing.


That is the culture of the ME - if you want Western T&C's then you are looking for them in the wrong region.

6100, using your argument we can then hold you personally responsible for the racism in your country, the poverty in your country, the incarceration rate in your country, the wars waged by your country etc.

Of course, that viewpoint is absolutely ridiculous!

As is the idea that the people who have moved here to fly for EK are responsible for the ills that exist here or even agree with those ills.

6100

You've made a valid point, non of which I'd disagree with. Certainly for some on here, your comments may be a bitter pill to swallow. There will be plenty on these forums who use it to vent and to warn others of the worsening T&C's and whilst there's no harm in that, the issue I have is that the majority of the same moaners and complainers will not take their concerns further. Now is as good a time as any to write in and explain your concerns. For God's sake, if it's safety concerns you're worried about, use the Company provided Confidential Safety Reports. That's what they're there for and management don't get to see your name. It really doesn't get any easier than that!

As for unions, proceed with caution. BALPA, for example, is heavily biased towards BA and really achieved nothing for me in my 20 years other than take 1% of of my hard earned salary. Too many individuals with self serving interest, hidden agendas and management aspirations. Those selfish morons spoilt it for the hard workers on the Company Councils who had a genuine desire to help their fellow colleagues. Personally, I'm better off without them.

Harry

Trader your post is amusing to say the least. 6100 makes some very valid points some of which may make people here feel a little uncomfortable. We are surrounded by sand and you have chosen to bury your head in it!

Wall Street Journal article on EK crewing problem.
 

Broken promise
From what I understand EK use the Boeing alertness model to measure fatigue on trip combos and crew rosters. If any fatigue management system relies on it then it has to be backed up by active crew input e.g sleep diary and motion watch, sleep plans, fatigue promotion, active pilot representation at meetings etc. From what I understand jeppesen are missing one vital ingredient - data. The module uses the karolinski sleep wake predictor to measure fatigue but only uses it to a certain
degree e.g without data the output comes out seven stages less than the real programme used by the sleepy scientists. You also then need a sleepy scientist to review the content rather than a commuter programmer. So whilst it will give a reasonable average it's just that. We also know that all pilots are different!. One thing that the swp does also is measure leisure time - in case the fatigue is carrying into it - this can also be impacted by commuting the word that goes out the window as far as pilots are concerned I guess less of a problem for EK. With days off seemingly at a premium at EK the risk to the airline is that sleep debt rolls into leisure and then the crew members use any rest days e.g before flying say in the evening to catch up on day to day chores e.g doing the school run, shopping when they should be resting for flight.
You then repeat the cycle into possible fatigue issues, remembering there is a difference between sleepy ness for the occasional ripper trip and cumulative fatigue for the daily grinder or nightly as the case maybe!

Although this is probably correct:

As well as this (but this is happening from the beginning of the mankind, so nothing new here):

This is not (correct):

As mentioned before, EK is above Labour law in Dubai (it is not the subject of that law).

When you sign your contract with them you get different impression and they give that impression on purpose to mislead you. The fact is: they can do absolutely everything they want with you and your contract and nobody can do anything to them (including country's ministries, courts and other mechanisms of law enforcement).

So, actually, most of the people don't know that they are signing dummy contracts with EK which are not valid and can not help them in the case they feel tricked and cheated or when their contract is violated.

And here lies the responsibility of those (EK) managers which other airlines' managers do not have: they all know this fact and they all brutally abuse it for personal gain. The ones who refused to abuse it are long gone.

vfenext--I did not dispute the point of what goes on here at all. I dispute the concept that by choosing to work here that WE are at fault or complicit.

Claiming that WE have not fought against the other injustices and therefore have no valid cause to fight an injustice against us is not an argument..well, at least not a a good one.

Lets look at it another way. Have 6100 gone back and done anything to fight the injustices here? Does this now mean he is responsible for what occurs here?

Are the "Westerners' who buy gas for their cars responsible?

To some degree we all are, however, it is a hypocritical stand to claim that the pilots here have any responsibility while the rest, in the West, drive their SUV's and live based on an oil economy.

The crap that goes on here is appalling. But I am no more responsible for that that ANYONE else ANYWHERE else on the planet. And that will continue, as pathetic as it is, because the globe, as a whole, doesn't push for change. The same stands true for the rest of the planets injustices as well.