There has been a lot of movement about the Tulsa base between transfers, upgrades and even some new hires to back fill some of these positions such as building cleaner, aircraft cleaner and parts washer. This is good news!
Members are watching the transfer and bid boards and noticing that some new faces are showing up at what is considered a prime shop and never saw a transfer posted for that position. It is important to understand the language in Article 12 of the TWU/AA Agreement, and more specifically Article 12.1 (Transfers to job Vacancies at TUL/AFW Maintenance Bases), which defines how the company fills openings. Here is the simple version of it:
‘A’ vacancies (1-hole) are created when a shop is going up in headcount or due to retirement/attrition. They are always posted on Bid/Transfer boards.
‘B’ vacancies (2-hole) are created when a person fills a posted bid, transfer, or upgrade opening. Filled at the company’s options by posting on Bid/Transfer boards.
‘C’ vacancies (3-hole) are created when a person fills a posted ‘B’ Vacancy. This is filled at the company’s option, first with a surplus of the same classification within the station, then 12l station to station transfers, then 12m upgrades. Unfilled A or B vacancies can be filled by the same process.
One thing to note when looking at the Bid/Transfer boards is that the rec number has a letter at the end noting whether it is an ‘A’ or ‘B’ vacancy.