(Please Note : not all comments
received are list here... these are a generalisations for the most common ones as
a full list would be impractical)
Quick Link Index to Comments:
Please Note: When reading
the Clubs' responses to members comments please remember that the Clubs'
Committee are governed by the Clubs' Constitution & a sense of fairness to ALL
members as a whole.
Below is an extract from
our constitution….
"The
objects of the Association shall be to provide recreational and sporting
equipment together with other equipment deemed suitable by the committee
as well as promote and organise social activities amongst the flight staff
employees of Qantas Airways Limited whilst on company service.”
An area was available on
the survey for suggestions/complaints etc. Many of those who were not
satisfied with the equipment or facilities provided suggested a number of
improvements. I have listed most of them below together with reasons why some had not already been
implemented.
Comments & Suggestions….. Clubs' Responses...
More computers and internet
access……..The vast
majority of suggestions on the bottom of the survey form listed lack of
computers in more ports as the reason for their dissatisfaction with the club
and their main priority. At present we have access in Cairns and Auckland. The combined fee for that
connection is about $700 per month or over $8000 per year. These are the only
ports where hotels supply a crew room at no cost to the club which provides a
secure area for the necessary equipment. A crew room is also provided in Bangkok which is also used by other crew.
Last year we investigated the cost of supplying a similar connection however
the quote was in the vicinity of $1000 per month which was too expensive to
warrant. Installation of computer internet access in all crew hotels that do
not supply a room FOC requires the hiring of a room possibly at rates similar
to the Qantas contracted rate which varies from $70 per night to over $350 in New York. The yearly cost is unacceptable
without taking into account the equipment and connection fees. We have
organised discounted rates in London (Internet
Cafe, 124 Cromwell Rd). and Singapore (SingNet City, 3rd floor Raffles City). There is also discounted internet service available in Pasadena. Turn right from the Hilton
towards the Doubletree about a couple of blocks up. We are looking at further
discounts in other ports.
More bicycles…….. Hotel
space is the main problem. Similar to an aircraft most areas in hotels are
already allocated for other storage. In the Hilton in Los Angeles and Frankfurt we paid a total of $11000 to rent
an area in the carpark and construct a secure cage for our equipment. Many
hotels do provide an area free of charge. That area is usually only large
enough for 6 bikes. Last year we approached the management of the Westin in Singapore regarding an area for bikes. The
quote for supplying a car space in the parking area was excessive and not
acceptable to the committee. We will be providing subsidised bike hire in Singapore close by the SwissHotel where
members will be charged $S8 instead of their usual $S18 fee.
Bike sizes/types….. A couple
of complaints regarding the selection of bikes. Some suggested mountain bikes
to be included in Los
Angeles for use on
the local mountain trails. When purchasing bikes we look for a model that will
cover most of the requirements of the majority of members and usually order a
hybrid style bike. When ordering we also order a mixture of sizes in the
following ratio - 1 small, 1 large and 4 medium. Each bike is ordered with a
bottle cage, thorn-proof tubes, carry rack and kickstand.
Loss of bikes….. In the
last financial year $41,244 was spent on new bikes! A number of bikes were
stolen whilst in the care of members. Los Angeles (Pasadena) is the current theft capital
with 11 bikes lost this year. (only 5 losses were reported to the club) Other
losses occurred at Darwin, Canberra, Cairns, Honolulu and London. It
is very important that bikes are NOT left unattended. You may be liable for the
loss under our constitution.
Poor bike maintenance…. No information
on who to contact……The
committee has arrangements with a number of bike shops however members must
take an active part in reporting any that require service. Call or fax the freecall
number on the back of your membership card from anywhere in Australia or our website has an area for
reporting problems. The expenditure on repairs worldwide this financial year
was $24,000. The previous year $22,000. The total number of bikes in all ports
is 165. That equates to $150 spent per bike on repairs in the last financial
year! It is up to you to advise us of any equipment requiring repair or any
misuse of equipment by other members.
Larger
frame/smaller frame bikes….The
normal ratio for bike ordering is 4
medium, 1 small and 1 large. Complaints have been received that there are
not enough small/large bikes. Unfortunately we cannot cater for all. Those
ratios reflect the overall crew compliments.
More subsidised health clubs…… $58,426
was spent subsidising gyms in the last financial year. The club has
arrangements in Adelaide (Renaissance recently included), Auckland, Brisbane, Cairns, Canberra, Darwin, Melbourne, Perth (presently looking at a change to
Fitness First) Frankfurt, London, Johannesburg and Los Angeles. We have had a few requests to
subsidise other ports such as Narita and Nagoya and Paris however the committee decided
earlier this year that the current expenditure was sufficient.
Tech crew not
represented on the committee……There were
a few comments on the surveys complaining of the lack of tech crew members on
the committee. Each year the committee is elected at the Annual General
Meeting. ANY financial member can nominate for the committee. The last tech
crew member to nominate about 5 or 6 years ago WAS elected and served as a
committee member for a few years.. Since then we have not received a nomination
from any tech crew.
Sewing machines in slip ports…..This has
been suggested in 5 of the returns suggesting very limited use for the expense.
Scissors…… Also
suggested they be supplied as many female crew like to sew. With the current
security arrangements crew are unable to carry on board however may still place
them in hold stowed baggage.
Supply Tennis & Golf Balls….Tennis
Balls, Golf Balls, Squash balls, Tennis and Squash court hire are the
responsibility of the crew member concerned. The club supplies high
quality tennis & squash racquets as well as golf clubs in many ports and
these can be permanently marked to prevent loss and theft, however doing
the same to balls in general is impractical
and cost prohibitive.
Donations to charities...... Some crew
have asked to cease donating any surplus funds to charity. I have been involved
with the club at committee level since the mid 1970s and there has NEVER been
any funds donated to any charity in that time. The clubs accounts are open to
any member to inspect and are audited every year.
Dishwashers…. One return
pointed out that it was not fair that Short Haul Lounge in Sydney was provided with a dishwasher by
the club and one was not supplied to Melbourne crew. That is news to me! We have never bought
dishwashers for anyone.
Reduced
membership fees for Melbourne Long Haul Crews… A request
was made that we reduce the fees for these crews as they only fly restricted
patterns. That is the case for a number of individuals such as 767, 747-300,
747-400 Tech Crew, Perth based Cabin Crew, Bangkok and Auckland based Cabin Crew and so on. The
fee will remain the same for all crew.
As a
result of the survey we have increased the number of bikes in Adelaide, Cairns and Canberra.
Availability of bikes in Singapore will be commencing September 1st.
The missing bikes in Los
Angeles will be
replaced.
Corporate
Costco Cards in Los
Angeles… These
were available through a special arrangement between Costco and the Hilton in Los Angeles. Costco will not issue them to
cover all members.
The Annual
General Meeting is in September. in a briefing room at
QCC1.As usual all Office Bearer and committee positions will be made vacant and
an election held. Any financial member can nominate for any position. Only
those in attendance can vote at the election. A number of changes to the Constitution
have been proposed and will be debated and voted upon at that meeting. The
proposed changes can be viewed on the club’s website. If you would like a
printed copy of the constitution and the proposed changes or wish to discuss
any club related matter please call 1800 040747.
Ed
Ronsisvalle, Operations Manager
