Mark_T

Seems to annoy enough of the people in this thread who have noticed it for it to be a reasonable extrapolation.

I find it perverse in the extreme that employees of a company would find it appropriate to wear badges calling for their own management to 'resign' while on paid duty. If they want to run a legitimate protest outside their place of work then so be it, but protesting in this manner while actually being paid to work is hardly something I can see being tolerated in many companies.

wboll

FA's and pilots are the only professionals I have ever seen wear their disputes in front of their customers. I am a professional and like all other professional people you never see one of us wear our disputes on our suits. So I REJECT your moronic messages and secondly the sympathy I had with the FA's and pilots is now DECLINED.

wboll

Delete

zski1

Instead of pouting, I would quit.

sluggoaafa

Of all airline work groups that have ever disputed with their management, and all the bag tags, badges that have been around with ALL airlines over the years, why does this simple little badge bother you so much?

No one has asked any of you to inquire what it means, then as some have said, if you don't want to hear about the dispute, don't ask.

not one of you who are complaining about the badge has stated that a FA just came out and said "YOU SEE THIS BADGE, IT'S BECAUSE WE'RE IN DISPUTE WITH THE MANAGEMENT OF AMR". You asked about what the simple badge was about, you got your answer. If you didn't want to hear anymore, then you could have simply just stated "Thank you, I don't need to know anymore"

I guess Nurses, or Writers (to name two off the top of my head) aren't Professionals who have never disputed in front of their customers?

The many Drs, Nursers, Lawyers, Educators, Business Professionals, Accountants, etc. that quit their jobs to become FAs know that this is a great job. They know how crappy those other jobs are (or could be).

Sure, any job can be (is) challenging at times, but there is a reason they quit those other Professions.

So the next time the Writers have a strike, you're going to tell them to just quit? Next time Nursers have a strike, you're going to tell them to quit? Hotel Staff...quit? Auto Mechanics..quit? Construction workers...quit?

Or is it that maybe those who have never been in a Union job where Seniority is everything for pay or work rules (lack thereof) just don't understand the profession or the meaning to fight for something you believe in.

maybe I'm just another one of those nuts who continues to bang his head against a brick wall because it's worthless to explain something that no one is willing to ever understand...oh wait, I'm talking to professionals who just quit if they don't like something

stbeeman

For the record, all of them that are shoved in my face via badges, slogans, TV coverage, etc. bother me. Especially if I feel like I-the-consumer-who-spends-the-money-to-employ-the-protesting-employee feel shat upon.


Mrs. stbeeman has been a nurse for the better part of 25 years in 5 states. Every hospital has been non-union. Note every hospital in the country is non-union of course, but hers were. During that period, I've never known her or any of the other fine professionals she worked with to take out there problems with management on their patients. I have heard her and her co-workers complain, but that's because I married her - it's part of the deal. And if I complain, she listens to me too.

I don't think anyone suggested being an FA was a bad job, and although I don't know of any doctors, nurses, lawyers, etc. who have quit their jobs to be FAs (shoot - right now it seems virtually impossible to GET a job as an FA with all the hiring freezes) then the job must have been worth the pay cut and change in life-style to them. Good on 'em.

YES! Although I tend to think the appropriate word for the action management ought to take when workers decide not to work is "FIRED" rather than "QUIT".

I believe everyone is entitled to a fair day's wage for a fair day's work. In better than 20 years, I've never needed a Union to protect me from the Evil Corporations. FAs chose to unionize at one time...the negatives you cite are outcomes of that decision. If you want the quality of your work to have more to do with your salary than your age, you picked the wrong job. That's your choice.

I don't think that's something I or anyone else I read on this thread implied. I think what we said is, it's bad policy to bring your customers into the fight. Only three things can happen, and only one of those is good for your side! Besides, it's not my problem if you don't like your pay, or feel like the upper management gets paid too much, etc. I pay an acceptable rate for acceptable level of service and that's all she wrote...union/management disputes are just an annoyance I'd as soon not have to deal with.

stbeeman

If I quit, it wouldn't be to avoid pouting. It would be out of recognition that the industry I was working in (or at least the company) was in for hard times. Having been through that in my current field, I'd have to balance the likelihood that good times would come again against the pain of the current situation and figure out what to do.

stbeeman

Come on, let's can the hyperbole and talk about reality here...no one has suggested that, and a besides, what we're talking about is disgruntled employees griping about what they perceive is unfair compensation of their management. There's no civil rights issue here...just a perception of compensation inequity.

clarkef

I respectfully disagree with the entire premise. When I got to the hospital, its to get better. In the medical field, the patient is the customer. I do not wish to discuss or be brought into the nurse/doctor/hospital funding drama. It would be very unprofessional for a nurse to wear such an advocacy pin in the hopes of starting dialogue with the patient about the labor dispute.

While a profession is in the process of providing the contracted service he or she should not be advocating, even if passively, about the contract issues. It doesn't matter the industy. I have no problems with protests, and picket lines, etc. But don't drag me into it.

stbeeman

I completely agree with this - the FAs wearing these badges are not reaching out to management, they are reaching out to the customer. Look, you guys are a union (not me) so if you feel that strongly over an issue go ahead and strike! I've said in other threads I think that's wrong too - it's one reason I don't work in a union job - but at least that's part of the legitimate purpose a union has. But don't expect Mr. Consumer to care about it or get drawn in...I think most of us just want to pay our money, take our seat, and get to our destination.

Allusha

Management should fire FAs who wear those RESIGN/DECLINE pins for something very simple....lack of professionalism. Can you imagine something similar happening on CX or even BA?

I like how police officers, fire fighters, nurses, doctors, wear pins to raise awareness of breast cancer, the military, etc....

FAs can't consistently seem to thank us for our business or greet us by name in First but the union can seem to get everyone to wear those badges.

I am sure there are some nurses, lawyers, Nobel Laureates, and Pulitzer Prize winners who changed careers to be FAs. Being a FA may not be what it used to. For the education and skills required, though, FAs have a vastly better job than similarly qualified workers in other industries. FAs are still better off than 80% of Americans and 99.99% of the world's population, i.e. the uninsured, people who have to do manual labor in unsafe conditions.

I think the best thing management could do for the airline/customers is break the union. In the long term it would improve customer satisfaction, increase safety (younger, more able FAs), and save money.

Maybe customers should wear badges saying "Predeparture drinks" "Greet me by name" "Thank me for my business."

I'm thinking of printing up cards saying "Wearing the DECLINE/RESIGN badge is immature and unprofessional. You should be ashamed of yourself," and giving them out as I deplane.

oneant

I think this is most unfair to the pax.

First of all, as sluggoaafa admitted, the goal of these DECLINE/RESIGN badges is very selfish:
1) they hope the pax ask about them
2) they hope the pax then complain to AA, acting as disgruntlement couriers

We, the pax, don't belong anywhere in this dispute. Not only that, but, for the pax who have zero sympathy about the FA's plight (put me in this group), some might be inclined to give you their honest opinion about your badge after you explain it to them. After all, you've invited them into your world, what do you expect? Of course, the pax would know that telling an FA their true opinion might only result in substandard service for that flight, so they might refrain.

I think that the position the FA's who wear these badges put the pax into is awkward at best.

But, by all means, keep wearing them. It's only your image and the image of your airline that are being tarnished. My crappy white wine still tastes the same...I think. Does that look like spit to you?

sluggoaafa

brick wall, bang head.

yes, Why yes I can. If you think it wouldn't, then you would be widely mistaken.


let's relook at the OP:
1) AMR Managers work in airports...Flight Attendants walk through airports and into operations where AMR Managers are.
2) AMR Managers help out at gates...Flight Attendants/Pilots need to go to gates to get to their airplane
3) AMR Managers often fly on airplanes to/from different cities (including Int'l ones)....Flight Attendants work in airplanes

so gripes are being taken up with the bosses.

Mark_T

It isn't that we don't get your point, we do, we just consider it unprofessional and inappropriate to be protesting in this way while working.

From many reports on here I know you personally deliver a high standard of service in flight, just a pity to compromise that with the badges.

As you say though I doubt we will ever agree on that point.

MJonTravel

I've never been one for "sloganeering" in support of pet causes in the workplace or on a uniform, but to each his/her own. For what it's worth, I saw the first one of these "resign" badges that I've seen yesterday. The # 1 F/A on my flight was wearing it. Wouldn't you know, she was probably the best flight attendant I've had in recent memory.

I didn't engage in any conversation about the "decline/resign" campaign.