Allow me to repost a response I had to the quote below. It's relevant to the topic of this thread and the tactics of SWA and SWAPA need to be seen by the rest of the pilots in this industry.
Quote:
Originally Posted by newKnow
I think what I'm trying to figure out is what SWAPA wants. Do you guys want a ratioed list with credit for retirement, or DOH? I think it has to be either of the two. Because, what someone ahead of you on the seniority list makes doesn't really effect you does it? He's still ahead of you if he makes $400 per hour or $35 per hour, right?
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Oh, let me answer that! They want a STAPLE! No, seriously. If they could they would staple us all. Consider...........
- The last agreement, called AIP1, had 37% of our pilots STAPLED and 52% of our pilots in the bottom 10% of the newly combined list. Yeah, read that again and let those numbers sink in.
- It also featured a max relative seniority loss of 32% with an average loss for AAI pilots of 22%.
Fortunately, our MEC said "no way" and killed it by a 7-1 vote. Here's the part that all the SWA pilots need to read and have thoroughly sink in. Perhaps if I capitalize it'll help, because so far you guys just don't seem to get this little factoid. Here it goes...... THE REASON OUR MEC KILLED IT OVERWHELMINGLY WAS BECAUSE THE VAST MAJORITY OF OUR PILOTS WERE AGAINST IT AND DEMANDED IT KILLED IMMEDIATELY. Did you get that SWA pilots? OUR MEC WAS DOING WHAT THE MEMBERSHIP WAS ASKING IT TO DO! Amazing, the Reps listening to the people they represent. What a concept.
It should also be noted that while our MEC voted against putting AIP1 out by a vote of 7-1, the SWAPA BOD voted 19-0 to put it out for a vote. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out which side the AIP grossly favored.
Fast forward to the last two or three days. Our Merger Committee returns to Dallas to meet with SWAPA and SWA management. It is immediately a less than friendly reception. In short order, the threats and intimidation commence. Here's the part that sickens me the most. Herb Kelleher and Colleen Barrett pay a little visit and they themselves threaten our MC with potential nonintegration if we don't accept the new schit sandwich that is laying infront of our MC. That part to me is so incredibly sad and disappointing. The two people who helped create the "Culture" are now threatening our MC. Flabbergasted folks. Simply flabbergasted.
More specifically, the threat was that IF this goes to arbitration and IF SWAPA subsequently puts up a fight because of the award (which goes w/o saying that they will), THEN we will not be integrated and instead will eventually be pieced out.
Wait, it gets better. Allow me to explain what's been slapped infront of us now by SWA management. The new and even worse deal now features a STAPLE of only 450 F/Os instead of the previous 650 (we currently have 1737 pilots), but now approximately 350 Cptns. are supposed to downgrade so 350 of their F/Os can upgrade. This will create 700 training cycles for which the money is supposed to come from delaying the AAI pilots transition to the SWA payscale.
Also, this new piece of crap that they're trying to force down our throats features no fences in ATL (AIP1 had a 10 yr fence), no first right to reupgrade for downgraded AAI Cptns. (so now when we lose our seats, instead of being able to upgrade as soon as the company starts upgrades again, we'll be forced to try and upgrade with our GREATLY erroded seniority numbers). There are also other protections that were erased from the "offer" compared to AIP1.
So there you have it. Our pilot group is now faced with an even worse offer and a management team that has teamed up with SWAPA to try and intimidate, strong-arm, bully, and scare us into accepting an SLI that will make us the laughing stock of the airline industry. The supposed alternative is that they will pull the application for a single SOC, run AirTran as a separate entity, and eventually part us out a la ATA.
Is this the Culture that we kept hearing about? Where the friggin' LUV? Perhaps the ONLY upside to this is that the fallacy that is the SWA Culture is being exposed for what it is. More specifically, we'll LUV you if you're on the inside, but we'll try and kill you if you're not and dare to say no to what we think is "fair and equitable".
Frankly SWA and SWAPA, your behavior and treatment of us has turned into a despicable and sickening display. It's immoral. None of us feel the LUV anymore and many of us are starting to realize that we will always be "former AirTran" even after integration.
To Oscar specifically and actually I suppose all SWA pilots, all we ever wanted was a reasonable SLI, followed by the two combined airlines kicking some serious tail, but SWAPA's arrogance and elitism and your management's bullying, intimidation, threatening and strong-arming have prevented that. Don't take my/our word for it. Look at what our peers in this profession are saying. EVERYBODY sees what's going on here but the SWA pilots.
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