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Memo to UA FAs: Don't use your phones with customers onboard the aircraft

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Memo to UA FAs: Don't use your phones with customers onboard the aircraft

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Old Jan 26, 2024, 1:14 pm
  #1  
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Memo to UA FAs: Don't use your phones with customers onboard the aircraft

Memo obtained by Live and Let's Fly reportedly saying "Use of a personal electronic device and/or accessories is not permitted while customers are on board the aircraft, with the exception of crew rest... Any crewmember found in violation will be subject to performance discipline up to and including termination.” Probably going to cause a bit of a rift with cabin crew, I think we've all seen FAs engrossed in their phone, especially during the middle of a longer flight. I wonder how strongly they will enforce violations on this; the "up to and including termination" is sometimes used in employee handbooks for only the most repeat and flagrant offenders.
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Old Jan 26, 2024, 1:30 pm
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What always gets me is seeing a flight attendant on their phones right after the announcement that phones must be in airplane mode.
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Old Jan 26, 2024, 2:06 pm
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People magazine still ok??
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Old Jan 26, 2024, 2:14 pm
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Originally Posted by Dyce
People magazine still ok??
As long as it's not the electronic version.
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Old Jan 26, 2024, 2:22 pm
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Wow. Recent United flights I’ve been on have FAs using their phones the overwhelming majority of the time.
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Old Jan 26, 2024, 2:28 pm
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Originally Posted by Baze
What always gets me is seeing a flight attendant on their phones right after the announcement that phones must be in airplane mode.
I once got pretty irritated with an FA who was hassling me about the size of the backpack I placed beneath the seat in front of me whilst sitting in the exit row. I found that annoying, but I accepted that it's her call and allowed her to put it in the bin above me. No, what irritated me was how she subsequently ignored my neighbor speaking on her cell phone during the safety demo. So, we're selectively following a only subset of the safety guidelines now?
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Old Jan 26, 2024, 2:32 pm
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Originally Posted by Dyce
People magazine still ok??
Lol

​​​​​Assume long chit chats in the galley no problemo? I have witnessed first hand many occasions FAs with loud conversations, laughs, etc, and ended up having to rush to their seats (for takeoffs), or rush to perform checks just before final approach.

I wonder what the intent is to singling out personal devices, when there are many other instances of "distractions"?
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Old Jan 26, 2024, 2:42 pm
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Originally Posted by iapetus
I once got pretty irritated with an FA who was hassling me about the size of the backpack I placed beneath the seat in front of me whilst sitting in the exit row. I found that annoying, but I accepted that it's her call and allowed her to put it in the bin above me. No, what irritated me was how she subsequently ignored my neighbor speaking on her cell phone during the safety demo. So, we're selectively following a only subset of the safety guidelines now?
inconsistent application of policies has been a United hallmark for some time now.
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Old Jan 26, 2024, 3:14 pm
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I thought it interesting that a personal device could activate an evacuation slide per Matt's blog post.
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Old Jan 26, 2024, 3:58 pm
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How are they going to enforce this? Are they relying on customer write ups?
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Old Jan 26, 2024, 4:08 pm
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Originally Posted by worldtrav
How are they going to enforce this? Are they relying on customer write ups?
Secret Shoppers flying in front cabin; could explain some of those last minute mystery downgrades experienced from time to time.

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Old Jan 26, 2024, 4:14 pm
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Excessive. The world today is based around these, like it or not. It is a cultural norm. On a long haul flight, We will get messages, there will be both personal and professional things that come up. UA is eliminating many "service areas" and they are being replaced by personal device options. Excessive use that detract from job performance is something that should be cut down on. Use during critical phases of the flight should be eliminated, but occasional use during cruise is a part of our culture. As the baby boomers retire and are replaced with millennials, gen xyz, this policy and memo in today's culture seems to me at least, about 20 years too late.
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Old Jan 26, 2024, 4:28 pm
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Originally Posted by fastair
Excessive. The world today is based around these, like it or not. It is a cultural norm. On a long haul flight, We will get messages, there will be both personal and professional things that come up. UA is eliminating many "service areas" and they are being replaced by personal device options. Excessive use that detract from job performance is something that should be cut down on. Use during critical phases of the flight should be eliminated, but occasional use during cruise is a part of our culture. As the baby boomers retire and are replaced with millennials, gen xyz, this policy and memo in today's culture seems to me at least, about 20 years too late.
It sounds like this is a bit of heavy-handedness over flight attendants going way too far with it. I've seen some on it literally every minute that they are not performing a required duty.

Originally Posted by lamphs
I thought it interesting that a personal device could activate an evacuation slide per Matt's blog post.
I think it's that a personal device that someone is glued to could cause a distraction that inadvertently causes them to activate the emergency slide.
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Old Jan 26, 2024, 4:38 pm
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Originally Posted by Baze
What always gets me is seeing a flight attendant on their phones right after the announcement that phones must be in airplane mode.
Remember that they use their work devices, which are larger sized mobile phone based, to read annoucements and manuals, as well as looking up all sorts of passenger information.
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Old Jan 26, 2024, 4:59 pm
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Originally Posted by worldtrav
How are they going to enforce this? Are they relying on customer write ups?
Well it won't be from their fellow FAs. I had an interesting chat on Monday night with a UA FA who said there are "blacklists" of FAs who rat on other FAs for not doing their jobs, which includes tire-slashing of the rats. I asked if management knows of and does anything about this, and the response was yes and no, respectively. The fish rots from the head down.
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