Term Paper on "Flight Attendant Fatigue"

Term Paper 15 pages (3969 words) Sources: 5 Style: APA

[EXCERPT] . . . .

Flight attendant fatigue and working conditions is one that has a fairly long and controversial history in the aviation industry. It is only recently that any real advances have been made towards some solutions to this issue, even though the unions and other bodies stated serious concerns about fatigue and its effects on aviation staff as early as 2004. In 2007, the report on this issue from the governmental bodies was finally released after a hiatus of approximately two years. This report indicates the importance of this issue and the real danger of fatigue in the working life of flight attendants.

The problem of fatigue is one that goes to the heart of safety as well as employee rights in the modern aviation labor environment. The essence of the problem is outlined in the following views expressed by the Association of Flight Attendant (AFA) at the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee's Subcommittee on Aviation in 2007

Fatigue is a very real and serious concern for the flight attendant workforce and poses a potentially dangerous risk for the safety of the aviation system. Multiple studies have shown that reaction time and performance diminish with fatigue and can ultimately cause an unacceptable situation for safety and security sensitive employees. (Congress Takes Up Safety Issues for Airline Passengers, First Responders)

These views are supported by many scientific studies in various fields and disciplines. For example, in 2006 the Civil Aerospace Medical Institute (CAMI) issued a report, which found that flight attendants are "...experiencing fatigue and tiredness and as such, is a salient issue warranting further evaluation." (Congress Takes Up Safety Issues for Airline Passengers, First Responders)

However, until fairly recently, the problem and the danger of fatigue to flight attendant staff has not been recognized and given the requisite amount of attention. As the President of the AFA, Patricia Friend, stated in her presentation before the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee's Subcommittee on Aviation (2007), while fatigue as a long-standing concern in the industry, this concern has been mainly directed at pilots and maintenance fatigue. The point she makes is that there has been comparatively little attention given to flight attendant fatigue. "No one questions that pilot and mechanic fatigue is a serious concern, but we're here to tell you that the industry also needs to realize the flight attendant fatigue is also a very real and serious concern" (TESTIMONY of PATRICIA a. FRIEND INTERNATIONAL PRESIDENT ASSOCIATION of FLIGHT ATTENDANTS...).

This paper will present an overview of the past and present situation with regard to flight attendant fatigue. It will also attempt to discuss the role that unions and associations have had in gaining the required attention from the authorities about this issue; as well as suggesting the possible reasons for the extreme delay in the publication of relevant research studies on the topic.

2. Overview

In 2004, the Flight Attendants Union launched a fatigue survey to, "...determine the pervasiveness of the problem among its members..." (Flight Attendants Union Launches Fatigue Survey). The survey was in response to numerous complaints from flight attendants with regard to flight schedules that were becoming increasingly demanding, with the concomitant demands on the energy and health of the flight attendants. As Candace Kolander, the Association of Flight Attendant's coordinator for safety, health and security, stated at the time; "We're getting a lot more complaints about fatigue than last year, as the industry is trying to get more productive..." (Flight Attendants Union Launches Fatigue Survey).

Central to the motivation behind the survey was the finding that many flight attendants were scheduled for a maximum of 14 hours of duty a day and "...we're seeing schedules of 13 hours and 45 minutes." (Flight Attendants Union Launches Fatigue Survey). This situation was also found to be on the increase, especially among regional airlines.

One obvious reason for this increase in fatigue levels, which will be expanded on in this paper, is that in order to maintain productivity in the face of increasing competition, many airlines were pressurizing their staff to work more hours and increasing schedules and workload. If this were the case, it would mean that schedules were being increased without the necessary regard for the rights of the staff for a work schedule that would not impact negatively on health and fatigue. The following quotation refers to the way that schedules had been increased and highlights the issues at stake.

In many cases, when the rest period includes exiting the airport, time to transit to and from a hotel, a meal, preparation for bed at night and preparation for the next duty day, flight attendants may be getting only four to five and a half hours of sleep in between duty days. The distinction between "rest time" and time actually asleep in bed was made strongly at a recent National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) symposium on fatigue in transportation

Flight Attendants Union Launches Fatigue Survey)

This distinction between 'rest time' and actual sleep is another aspect that was elaborated on in the survey and in subsequent reports and studies. The 2004 survey also included a form that employed a "sleepiness scale" created by researchers at Stanford University. The survey was intended to provide sufficient data to the FFA so that the AFA could make the case that, "...regulations for flight attendants need to be modified to prevent scheduling abuse and sleepiness on the job for employees... (Flight Attendants Union Launches Fatigue Survey). In other words, the regulations that were in place by the FFA were seen as being not adequate or sufficient to deal with the problem of flight fatigue in the case of flight attendants.

As noted, central to the concerns and intentions of the AFA survey about the increase in flight fatigue was the view that the situation had developed as a direct result of tight budget constraints in the industry. An article on this aspect provides the following summation.

As airlines restructure and cut corners to make ends meet, flight attendants are being forced to work to the point of exhaustion because of poorly scheduled duty time, lengthened duty days due to concessionary bargaining, or flagrant company violations of flight attendants' schedules.

Flight Attendants Union Launches Fatigue Survey)

There has even been conjecture that these economic issues were also the main reason for the delay in the initial governmental study into flight attendant fatigue.

It should also be noted that the concern expressed by the AFA and other flight attendant bodies was not only directed at the personal health and welfare of the flight attendants but was also part of a larger concern related to national safety and security. The issue of flight attendant fatigue has a profound impact on issues such as safety regulations and the flight attendant's response to an emergency. It was felt that flight fatigue could have dramatic and far-reaching consequences in terms of emergency and evacuation duties. This aspect was particularly pertinent in the light of the threat of terrorism in the post 9/11 environment in the country. Simply stated, "In an era of heightened security, with the need for constant vigilance, we cannot afford to be exhausted on the job" (Flight Attendants Union Launches Fatigue Survey)

These points were to be re-emphasized later by the President of the AFA at the House of Representatives hearing on the issue in 2007. A good example from the hearing of the way that fatigue among flight attendants could have a detrimental affect on aviation safety is as follows.

For example, on July 9, 1995, an ATR72 operated by Simmons Airlines, as American Eagle Flight 4127, experienced the loss of the rear cabin entry door during the takeoff climb. The flight crew was able to circle around and land successfully. The aircraft received minor damage and one flight attendant received minor injuries. The flightdeck crew, the other flight attendant and the 61 passengers reported no injuries. The probable cause of the incident was the flight attendant inadvertently opening the door inflight due in part to flight attendant fatigue from a lack of sleep and the long duty day.

TESTIMONY of PATRICIA a. FRIEND INTERNATIONAL PRESIDENT

ASSOCIATION of FLIGHT ATTENDANTS - CWA, AFL-CIO)

As a result of the 2004 survey, concerns within the industry increased about the problem of fatigue. In 2005, these concerns were further exacerbated by the dismissal of many staff members in staff reduction and rationalization procedures in the industry. As a result of these staff reductions there was the possibility that remaining staff members and flight attendants were being "stretched to the limit" (Unions worry about flight attendant fatigue).

This view was also one that was adopted by the various bodies that supported flight attendants. As Tommie Hutto-Blake, president of the Association of Professional Flight Attendants, stated in a news report in 2005,

Flight attendants are guaranteed eight hours between flights, but... union officials say that means attendants often get only four to five hours of sleep when they're scheduled for back-to-back shifts. That eight-hour downtime includes time to get out of… READ MORE

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