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Recently I have become aware through an article from ARSA (Aeronautical Repair Station Association) that the International Brotherhood of Teamsters (IBT) has proposed language in the economic stimulus bill currently before Congress that would restrict the use of contract repair stations. This effort appears to be primarily aimed at foreign repair stations by requesting a moratorium be imposed on outsourcing of aircraft maintenance to such.

I thought this issue should be of interest to our readership in that I have heard two sides of the topic. Some state that this is needed to save American jobs, provide greater security, and ensure quality. Others state that this will be harmful to the economy by driving up costs and would invite retaliatory actions from EASA and other countries, and foreign repair stations do not impose a threat to aviation safety and are as secure as domestic repair stations.

ARSA points out that there are just 698 FAA certificated repair stations abroad while there are 1,200 EASA certificated domestic repair stations. Their argument is that this evidences the technological superiority of the United States and, in fact, creates jobs for skilled aircraft technicians.

The association also points out that the existence of FAA-approved maintenance abroad is integral to our industry, stating that the restriction of such use “will inhibit growth of American carriers.”

A final point, the IBT proposal contains language that would, “provide economic and job-placement assistance to airline employees who have been displaced from their jobs or have incurred significant loss of pay and/or benefits as a result of airline bankruptcies and/or foreign outsourcing of their jobs.”

I applaud ARSA in apprising us of this effort. While not necessarily agreeing with all their tenets, I do agree that aircraft maintenance technicians should be made aware of what the Teamsters are attempting to do through an attachment to an important bill before Congress. The Teamsters were a powerful force in the election of the new administration and therefore should have some influence in policy making.

My questions to our readership are these:

1. Do we need such legislation?
2. Will jobs be lost to contract maintenance outside the United States?
3. Are foreign repair stations adequately monitored for safety, security, and compliance by governing authorities?
4. Are U.S. airline maintenance requirements integral to the existence and growth of approved foreign repair stations?

I believe if such legislation is enacted considerable results will affect each and every reader of this publication. What do you think? I’m looking forward to hearing from you.

Due to the holidays we won’t have newsletters for the next two weeks. Merry Christmas!

To all the wonderful readers of this publication who have stuck with us through the tough times of 2008 by continuing to read and use our publication and have considered the purchase of our advertisers’ products, I and the AMT staff would like to thank you and wish you and your loved ones a very Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays.

Christmas and the holiday season is a time to rejoice in what we have been given and fortunate enough to earn. It is a time to share our joy with family, friends, and others who may be less fortunate than we are.

Our best wishes to all and stay safe.

Are we better at getting the information we need to perform our jobs more efficiently with the high-speed computers in operation today in the workplace and at home? Or is it something else?

I recall when getting information required just a phone call or a couple at times or just going down the hallway to another office to chat with someone about my query. Later faxes became a popular way to acquire information. Then computers came along, and while difficult for the non-technically oriented, added capabilities regarding information theretofore unseen.

Now we have made tremendous strides in computer capabilities and I am wondering is this new capacity adding to our ability to extract information efficiently? The key word here is efficiently.

Are we spending significant time going through security runs while the computer turns on, memorizing several pass words for different access, sorting through so much information as to actually confuse, dealing with systems break-downs that slow our ability to do the work, etc.?

In the end I know computers have added to productivity in the aircraft maintenance workplace. I realize it has furthered the sharing of information among contemporaries. But at what costs? More of you are working longer by transferring the information gathering process to after hours or the weekend. Others are studying company provided training at home on the computer.

What happened to the phone call? I believe too much emailing is being done when just a phone call would suffice to acquire the needed information.

IT has become a dominant part of every business, especially our highly volatile technologies. What do you think? Can the process be improved? Are there ways to be more efficient with the computers or without them?

Before I begin, I would like to acknowledge and thank all the FAA persons that contributed to the online eulogies for Bill O’Brien. You can be sure the magazine will get these to Bill’s family.

I recall participating in the development of a maintenance training course that included developing the classroom manual. In the book technicians were drawn in their various work environments. We happened to put baseball/golf-type caps on their heads. Boy, did we hear about that from many of our clients. To them, this was an uninformed, demeaning depiction of the aviation maintenance technician.

This brings me to the subject of this week’s blog. How important is dress to the aviation technician? I know it is important at certain levels of management despite what business you are in, unless you work for an Apple or Google. The latter are always neat but casual whereas the former most often require suits and ties.

I would opine that it is important, if only for the image it impresses. Having no other information to guide me, I am more apt to do business with a shop that is neat and well-organized than one that has tools scattered indiscriminately about and whose personnel are wearing oil-soaked, torn uniforms with two-week-old dirt encrusted everywhere. My reasoning, while possibly flawed, is that the neatly attired maintenance person in the orderly shop is well organized in his knowledge and skills, takes pride in himself and his appearance, and takes the time to see that he continues to impress in this manner. That provides greater confidence in the work that will be done. If he is neat in his appearance he will most likely be neat with his work, etc.

I know that ultimately it is not the clothes that make the man, but don’t you think it sure helps the maintenance person get off to the right start being properly and neatly attired? Isn’t it important to create a favorable first impression, not forgetting one’s own self-esteem?

What are your thoughts on this issue? I have heard there have been several discussions on various media regarding this issue. Do you have an opinion?

We have extended the Readers in Action Contest to Jan. 5. Send your photos to editor@amtonline.com and good luck.