Originally Posted by
sailingfun
I want their hourly rate at a minimum however I want our retirement plan and work rules. That will put Delta costs well above SWA total block costs. I think Delta can afford it and my contract survey will reflect that.
Some will put they want total restoration and nothing less. Its a great goal but is it achievable in one contract. I don't think so. In fact I think that if we opened for that we assure ourselves of only 1 thing. We will work under the current contract for at least the next 5 years.
Good for you, sailingfun, re: your personal minimums. But I'm a little confused about something. To bring our MD-88/90 pilots (who are the ones doing the most comparable type of flying to SWA pilots) up to SWA pilot pay would require approximately a 50% increase. To bring our pay up to C2K+COLA ("total restoration") would require approximately a 70% increase.
Basic negotiating strategy is to open for more than you're ultimately willing to settle on. So if you think it's wrong to open with a 70% increase, yet you think it's wrong to open with anything less than a 50% increase (I'm assuming that because you said your contract survey "will reflect that")... don't you think that is too narrow a range and does not allow the room needed for negotiation? It just seems to me that you're making an inconsistent and/or unrealistic argument here.