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Fast Fact Friday
Commuter Policy – Lineholder
Friday, April 11, 2025
Q1: “What are the requirements for utilizing the Commuter Policy when I have a Lineholder pairing?”
To be covered by the Commuter Policy, you must list and present for one (1) Southwest flight or two (2) consecutive flights on an off-line carrier(s) that are scheduled to arrive into the SWA domicile of the pairing at least one (1) hour prior to scheduled check-in.
Q2: “I picked up a pairing out of MDW and will be commuting in from the east coast. There are a lot more flights into ORD from my home airport. Can I commute into ORD and be covered by the Commuter Policy?”
No. To be covered by the Commuter Policy, you must list and present for an applicable flight(s) which are scheduled to arrive into a SWA domicile. In your situation, the flight(s) must be scheduled to arrive into MDW to be covered by the Commuter Policy.
Q3: “I commute out of GEG and have a pairing where the first leg is a DH to SEA. If I waive that DH, will I be covered by the Commuter Policy if I can’t get on the two (2) Horizon flights scheduled GEG-SEA to get in before my report time?”
No. When you waive a DH at the beginning of a pairing, you are not covered by the Commuter Policy if you cannot make it into the outstation. If you cannot make it to SEA, you would be given a No Show and the 2.5 attendance points associated with this infraction.
Q4: “My covered commuter flight is running late, and I think I’m going to miss my check-in. What do I need to do? Will Crew Scheduling automatically pull my trip?”
The first thing you’ll need to do is call Crew Scheduling so they can work through the options in Article 33.1.A for a Lineholder who is covered by the Commuter Policy. Crew Scheduling will place a purple “COM” bar on your screen to denote that you have communicated with them about a covered commuter situation.
This Flight Attendant notified Crew Scheduling of a potential Commuter Policy situation from SMF to LAS. They were able to make it prior to departure of their flight and required no further adjustments. The purple “SMF” bar will remain on their screen but doesn’t affect anything.
Crew Scheduling works through the Lineholder Commuter Policy options in order of the list found in Article 33.1.A. You’ll notice that pulling the pairing as a personal leave with no pay is an option, it is the last option on the list. This is because Crew Scheduling’s primary focus is covering the operation. Our Commuter Policy is in place to protect us from accruing attendance points (No Show) when we meet the parameters listed. In order to both protect the operation and the Flight Attendant, there are other options prior to pulling the assignment.
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Require the Flight Attendant to list and present for another flight that will get them into domicile for their scheduled check-in.
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Allow the Flight Attendant to catch up to their original assignment in a mutually agreed upon outstation or SIP.
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Give the Flight Attendant another pairing out of Open Time for the same days.
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Assign the Flight Attendant APSB at the outstation. If the Flight Attendant is not assigned a pairing within four (4) hours after being designated as APSB, Crew Scheduling will assign the Flight Attendant a pairing for the following day.
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Pull the Flight Attendant’s pairing as a personal leave without pay and place a purple “COM” bar on their screen. The Flight Attendant is required to pick up a comparable pairing (i.e., 3-day for a 3-day) from Open Time and notify Crew Scheduling.
NOTE: When option 5 is used, the comparable pairing needs to be picked up within thirty (30) days of the personal leave being granted. However, the pairing picked up from Open Time does not need to be flown within that timeframe. After the comparable pairing is picked up and Crew Scheduling is notified, the Flight Attendant can do whatever they would like with the pairing, including give it away, DRT, trade, etc.
KEEP IN MIND: If option 5 is used and a purple “COM” bar is placed on your screen indicating an assignment was pulled, you can pick up another legal assignment from Open Time or TT/GA on those days. This includes picking up your comparable pairing to fulfill the Commuter Policy requirement.
This Flight Attendant had a Commuter Policy situation when commuting from ORF to BWI, which resulted in their 3-day pairing and a “COM” bar being placed on their screen. They picked up a comparable pairing (indicated with the “D”) over the “COM” bar, thus fulfilling their Commuter Policy obligation after notifying Crew Scheduling.
Q5: “I was on an AM pairing that got me into domicile with plenty of time to catch my SWA commuter flight home! Crew Scheduling called and rescheduled me into another pairing that gets in ten (10) minutes after my commuter flight is scheduled to push. Is there anything I can do?”
If you are unable to make the last SWA flight home due to a reschedule, contact Crew Scheduling to be provided a hotel room (paid for by SWA) and receive a Must Ride home the following day on the first flight with available seats. (Article 33.3)