Originally Posted by
LifeNtheFstLne
Just to correct your earlier statement: we never had an annual fee at CAL
I'm 5 years in and I still always arrive unsure of where I stand on the boarding priority list. The system and the gate agents are flawed.
Sorry, I haven't looked much at other airlines' pass travel. I know there are/were a few that did annual fee for unlimited travel.
So bottom line is that unlimited free travel was one of CAL's nonwage benefits. Pass travel can get expensive; I've traveled quite a bit and there's been more than one month that I've had to pay >$1000 in pass travel.
When you get down to the brass tacks, taking this benefit away from CAL employees was the equivalent of a pay cut.