Originally Posted by
Regularguy
Can some of you CAL guys or gals tell me about the following:
In a recent conversation I had with a CAL pilot I was informed that a contract which had a 20% pay increase (over current CAL rate) but cut the cap to 85 hours would be considered a pay cut and this pilot would vote NO! (Yes he shouted).
But a moment later this pilot told me how constantly "tired" he was. He was tired (using a leading expletive) when he went to work, tired when he got home, tired while he worked and so on.
I guess I don't get it, working 100 hours with 10 - 13 days off for the money and being dead tired all the time is a good thing, but yet working 15% less with a 20% pay raise is a cut/bad?
Please help me with this, I have always tried to work less. I'm one of those who when contract 2000 (UAL) came around I dropped my hours to 70.
I guess what I'm also asking is, where's the balance between "productivity" (more hours = more money) and life not in an airplane?
Just another typical person living beyond their means. I am always amazed by the number of people I fly with who need to be making 85-95 hours a month to make ends meet. Am I really the only pilot who budgets AND SAVES based on minimum pay guarantee? Sure the additional money when I get an 80-85 hour line is great on occasion but I don't need it to survive on a day-to-day basis like many guys I fly with seem to think they need.
I don't want to kill myself at work either or fly exhausted either. The company is going to do that to us 3 months out of the year during summer anyway.
Flew with a guy recently who was upset he got a "light" line for the month and couldn't find the extra 10 hours to pick up anywhere....EVEN IN FO OPEN TIME. He was already one of the opportunists from back in the 80's who benefited more than any group here and he still can't afford his life. Unbelievable.
Live within your needs, not just within your means.