FAA Reauthorization: Call to Action6-13-2023Local 1224 Pilots, As we shared with you in this week’s Teamsters News Report, Congress is currently considering the FAA Reauthorization Act, with amendments being written this week. Even over this last weekend changes have occurred rapidly in the House and Senate bills. The Teamsters Airline Division and the International Brotherhood of Teamsters’ legislative staff have been in direct contact with members and staffers writing the bills and are regularly updating me on the continuous changes. There are some good proposals in the mix, but there are also MANY very bad proposals that will impact your career, your privacy, and public safety! Teamsters is using a legislative call to action system that will notify you in real time when your feedback and support are most critical. Through this system you will be alerted when there is an immediate need for you to send a message directly to the legislators in your district. To sign up to receive these updates, please follow this link and complete the form: http://ibt.io/FAAReauth. The information you provide will be used to communicate solely about the FAA Reauthorization and will not be shared with any third parties. Your mailing address will be required to identify the district in which you vote. Because this legislation is moving so quickly, it will be important that you watch for updates and TAKE ACTION IMMEDIATELY when you receive an alert from the Teamsters Airline Division or Teamsters International requesting your help. You should be keenly aware that the FAA Reauthorization bills include important issues that will directly impact your job and your future as a pilot. Some of these issues include: • 25-hour Cockpit Voice Recorder. This means, even if disallowed by your CBA, your private discussions could be exposed if an incident, even one that you’re not involved in, occurs in a foreign or U.S. jurisdiction. • Cockpit Video Surveillance. Teamsters have long fought against video surveillance in the cockpit. Video surveillance in the cockpit raises significant privacy and security concerns. Not to mention, in the unfortunate event of a tragic accident, there is simply no reason to risk your disturbing end being leaked onto the internet for your family and friends to see. • First Officer Qualification, aka 1500-Hour Rule. This Local has fought for this since the Buffalo crash in 2009, and there hasn’t been a major accident since its implementation. The industry is promoting deceptive work arounds like including 150 hours of sim time towards your minimum ATP qualification. Think about that – 50 three-hour sim sessions. What can you possibly do in a sim for 150 hours that teaches real-world decision making? Sims are perfect for learning procedures; they are not a substitute for actual experience, making actual decisions (sometimes poorly) in actual aircraft to hone yourself into a true professional. • Autonomous Aircraft. The industry wants the public to believe that your job requires no skill. You just read the checklist, you push the buttons and miracles happen. They want to classify you as an expense that can be cut. With the profession’s recent contract gains, they are even more ravenous to replace you with fully autonomous or reduced crewing in certain operations that AI can aid. Remind them that computers do not have a will to live. We are working hand-in-hand with the Teamsters Airline Division and Department of Legislative Affairs at the International Brotherhood of Teamsters to exclude any language that harms pilots. Please join us in this effort by signing up to receive updates and TAKING IMMEDIATE ACTION when requested. Fraternally, Joe Muckle, President APA Teamsters Local 1224 |
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