Originally Posted by
Mesabah
80 you're thinking as a pilot and are forgetting the management side of the equation as well as the legal side of it.
We pilots assign a hierarchy to our profession, that being:
student -> private -> commercial -> flight instructor -> regional -> mainline -> astronaut -> NewK
However, the legal system and management don't see it that way. All they see are:
Current rates of pay -> career expectations
The problem lies in the career expectations, since management can tweak this in favor of the regional pilots if they want leverage against mainline pilots.
Imagine I was management at Delta and wanted to get concessions out of your group. All I have to do is say I will merge you guys with Comair and you are pretty much forced into those concessions. However, as management I can't overstep to the point you guys start voting with your feet.
Merging with Comair might not seem as bad as it sounds, but remember as management I still have 76 seat scope relief so after all is said and done I can send their planes to Skywest. However, before I do that I set Comair's contract rates to $500 an hour, which doesn't matter since the planes are going away. But this puts them in a position to have all of Delta stapled below them in a SLI. This is since both their current rates and career expectations are now way above that of any mainline pilot.
If the planes are going away that is taken into account with the arbitrators who will get the SLI. The career expectation would be CRJ200. Even if the CRJ900 didn't go away, it'd come over on our pay rates which are not $500/hr which they'd probably find farcical anyways and the CRJ900 is still < the DC9.
That's a lot of effort on the side of management to just force the pilots to take concessions. If there is ever a mainline/RJ merger it'll be a staple but if Delta wouldn't merge with Compass I don't think they'll ever merge with a regional and give up their whipsaw.
The better way to get concessions, hostages via furlough.
Originally Posted by
LuvJockey
Odd - it was only a short time ago when you guys were stating that wages didn't count in an integration. This is getting interesting. Go on.
That still hasn't changed.
Which reminds me of that scene from Top Secret!:
General Streck, German High Command: [talking on the phone] What is the condition of Sergeant Kruger?
[pause]
Very well, let me know if there is any change in his condition.
[Hangs up]
He's dead.