Originally Posted by
OldSF3Dude
Well, that pretty much sums things up. The comments on what is struck work that is. It sums things up on many levels. It makes more sense why Frontier Express flights that are constantly full are being dropped too. By getting rid of them ahead of time it won't be strike work and can be given to Frontier proper, or whoever, during a RAH minus Frontier strike. I don't why I didn't see that coming.
As for the strike vote being "futile", I think that depends on how you look at it. It is futile in the sense that it means nothing in the near term, but it is part of the game and the process that must be followed to eventually get somewhere.
I was a member of ALPA for 7 years and have only been a Teamster at RAH for 8 months. I know about Midwest Express pilots getting screwed and I'm learning more and more about Frontier and FAPA, etc. To me, being fairly new here, I have a hard time understanding all this bad blood between Airbus Frontier and everybody else. I assume I'm just seeing the worst of it being played out on this board. Personally, I think Frontier is a great company. Sure, it's losing money, but a lot of airlines are. I do find it strange that (on this board at least) so many Frontier pilots show such bitterness towards the pilots at RAH whose profits support the Frontier branded operations. Guys who make six figures at Frontier get that money because of guys that make 20K per year at Chautauqua. Perhaps that's a bit simplistic but you get my point.
Also, I don't think the pilots doing the contract work fairly appreciate the branded operation either. I've done what is basically contract work my whole time at other airlines. Sure, your pretty much garaunteed to make profits, but your destiny is not your own. Your company owns no airplanes...nothing. I think their is something to be said for flying under your own flag. The risks are greater, but hopefully the rewards someday will be as well.
Full Frontier Express flights are being dropped for the same reason that People's Express went T.U. We can't charge enough to cover the cost of operating the small jets on those routes. The struck work definition is an afterthought at best. Zooropa has his own definition of struck work but I don't see where ANY of Frontier's flying, that is performed by an express carrier, could be considered struck work to the mainline since it is the mainline's flying to begin with. Mainline contracts/allows an express carrier to do the work, mainline can hire / fire the express carrier, but if the express carrier goes on strike mainline can't fly those routes? I don't agree.
The bad blood comes from the naked seniority grab that the 357 pilots made coupled with forcing F9 pilots into the IBT. The constant reference - always by RAH pilots by the way - to us being protective of bigger equipment demonstrates their envy, not ours. We are protective of the quality of life that we have built at an airline we intended to spend our careers at. We have no say over what equipment we fly, and most don't care.
As a Midwest pilot maybe you see the non sequitur in the middle of the arguments made by the IBT leadership and RAH pilots on this board: "We had nothing to do with destroying Midwest. WE have no choice where we flew or for whom."
But, "WE bought you with money made from the sweat off our backs and therefore WE are entitled to seniority gains at your expense."
Leading to, "YOU have to respect our strike and help us because we forced you to be in our bargaining unit."
Again, this is a moot point and I'm probably wasting electrons writing this. RAH 357 is nowhere near a strike. This vote is a morale builder, nothing more (with 60% of the pilots voting on the first day). F9 will be owned by someone other than Republic Holdings or will be out of business LONG before any of this matters. I'm betting on the former.