The lunacy of airline pay calculation
#1
Gets Weekends Off
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Joined APC: Apr 2014
Position: RJ right-seat warmer
Posts: 632
The lunacy of airline pay calculation
This is an honest question.
The system of pay in the airline industry is beyond convoluted. The rules covering regular pay, soft pay, deadhead pay, breaking guarantee pay...I mean, they make the engineer's panel of a Lockheed Constellation look positively minimalist and simplistic by comparison. Just trying to understand the airline pay system would probably drive an accomplished corporate tax accountant to an early grave.
I know of no other industry that is legally allowed to require an employee to report for work at 0800, finish duty at 2100, and get paid for 4 hours of work. (As happened to me today.)
Why are we paid this way? Why don't we have a system like every other hourly job in America, where you are paid from the time you clock in till the time you clock out, minus perhaps a lunch break?
Why do we allow ourselves to give 13 hours of our lives for 4 hours of pay?
Seriously?
The system of pay in the airline industry is beyond convoluted. The rules covering regular pay, soft pay, deadhead pay, breaking guarantee pay...I mean, they make the engineer's panel of a Lockheed Constellation look positively minimalist and simplistic by comparison. Just trying to understand the airline pay system would probably drive an accomplished corporate tax accountant to an early grave.
I know of no other industry that is legally allowed to require an employee to report for work at 0800, finish duty at 2100, and get paid for 4 hours of work. (As happened to me today.)
Why are we paid this way? Why don't we have a system like every other hourly job in America, where you are paid from the time you clock in till the time you clock out, minus perhaps a lunch break?
Why do we allow ourselves to give 13 hours of our lives for 4 hours of pay?
Seriously?
#2
Gets Weekends Off
Joined APC: Dec 2014
Posts: 310
This is an honest question.
The system of pay in the airline industry is beyond convoluted. The rules covering regular pay, soft pay, deadhead pay, breaking guarantee pay...I mean, they make the engineer's panel of a Lockheed Constellation look positively minimalist and simplistic by comparison. Just trying to understand the airline pay system would probably drive an accomplished corporate tax accountant to an early grave.
I know of no other industry that is legally allowed to require an employee to report for work at 0800, finish duty at 2100, and get paid for 4 hours of work. (As happened to me today.)
Why are we paid this way? Why don't we have a system like every other hourly job in America, where you are paid from the time you clock in till the time you clock out, minus perhaps a lunch break?
Why do we allow ourselves to give 13 hours of our lives for 4 hours of pay?
Seriously?
The system of pay in the airline industry is beyond convoluted. The rules covering regular pay, soft pay, deadhead pay, breaking guarantee pay...I mean, they make the engineer's panel of a Lockheed Constellation look positively minimalist and simplistic by comparison. Just trying to understand the airline pay system would probably drive an accomplished corporate tax accountant to an early grave.
I know of no other industry that is legally allowed to require an employee to report for work at 0800, finish duty at 2100, and get paid for 4 hours of work. (As happened to me today.)
Why are we paid this way? Why don't we have a system like every other hourly job in America, where you are paid from the time you clock in till the time you clock out, minus perhaps a lunch break?
Why do we allow ourselves to give 13 hours of our lives for 4 hours of pay?
Seriously?
#3
Gets Weekends Off
Joined APC: Oct 2013
Position: FO
Posts: 525
This is an honest question.
The system of pay in the airline industry is beyond convoluted. The rules covering regular pay, soft pay, deadhead pay, breaking guarantee pay...I mean, they make the engineer's panel of a Lockheed Constellation look positively minimalist and simplistic by comparison. Just trying to understand the airline pay system would probably drive an accomplished corporate tax accountant to an early grave.
I know of no other industry that is legally allowed to require an employee to report for work at 0800, finish duty at 2100, and get paid for 4 hours of work. (As happened to me today.)
Why are we paid this way? Why don't we have a system like every other hourly job in America, where you are paid from the time you clock in till the time you clock out, minus perhaps a lunch break?
Why do we allow ourselves to give 13 hours of our lives for 4 hours of pay?
Seriously?
The system of pay in the airline industry is beyond convoluted. The rules covering regular pay, soft pay, deadhead pay, breaking guarantee pay...I mean, they make the engineer's panel of a Lockheed Constellation look positively minimalist and simplistic by comparison. Just trying to understand the airline pay system would probably drive an accomplished corporate tax accountant to an early grave.
I know of no other industry that is legally allowed to require an employee to report for work at 0800, finish duty at 2100, and get paid for 4 hours of work. (As happened to me today.)
Why are we paid this way? Why don't we have a system like every other hourly job in America, where you are paid from the time you clock in till the time you clock out, minus perhaps a lunch break?
Why do we allow ourselves to give 13 hours of our lives for 4 hours of pay?
Seriously?
I agree that regional pay is crap, but there's many jobs that don't pay extra if you don't leave the office til 10pm. If you want the least amount work for the most pay and don't want to hold out for a Legacy gig trying flying corporate. Most (keyword being MOST) corporate guys I know/talk to fly about half as much as I do. The catch is that they're on call almost every day...
#4
Gets Weekends Off
Thread Starter
Joined APC: Apr 2014
Position: RJ right-seat warmer
Posts: 632
And yet it is perfectly acceptable in this industry for one to be paid for 4 hours when one was available to the company for more than three times that number.
I just don't get it. How did we, as pilots, decide that the only time worth being compensated for is the time between door close and door open? It's an honest question. I don't know the answer. I'm just curious as to how the industry came to adopt such practices.
Didn't a group of policemen recently sue and win a class-action suit because they weren't being paid for the first 30 minutes they reported to work (such time was used for changing clothes in the locker room, catching up on daily briefs, etc., before hitting the street.) How are we any different?
#5
Gets Weekends Off
Joined APC: Jun 2013
Posts: 806
This is an honest question.
The system of pay in the airline industry is beyond convoluted. The rules covering regular pay, soft pay, deadhead pay, breaking guarantee pay...I mean, they make the engineer's panel of a Lockheed Constellation look positively minimalist and simplistic by comparison. Just trying to understand the airline pay system would probably drive an accomplished corporate tax accountant to an early grave.
I know of no other industry that is legally allowed to require an employee to report for work at 0800, finish duty at 2100, and get paid for 4 hours of work. (As happened to me today.)
Why are we paid this way? Why don't we have a system like every other hourly job in America, where you are paid from the time you clock in till the time you clock out, minus perhaps a lunch break?
Why do we allow ourselves to give 13 hours of our lives for 4 hours of pay?
Seriously?
The system of pay in the airline industry is beyond convoluted. The rules covering regular pay, soft pay, deadhead pay, breaking guarantee pay...I mean, they make the engineer's panel of a Lockheed Constellation look positively minimalist and simplistic by comparison. Just trying to understand the airline pay system would probably drive an accomplished corporate tax accountant to an early grave.
I know of no other industry that is legally allowed to require an employee to report for work at 0800, finish duty at 2100, and get paid for 4 hours of work. (As happened to me today.)
Why are we paid this way? Why don't we have a system like every other hourly job in America, where you are paid from the time you clock in till the time you clock out, minus perhaps a lunch break?
Why do we allow ourselves to give 13 hours of our lives for 4 hours of pay?
Seriously?
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12-05-2012 08:29 AM