Originally Posted by
sailingfun
The idea of extra pay based on cost of living was discussed many times over the last 25 years. There are a lot of problems with the concept. At one point it was looking like we would get a stipend in NYC. The LAX crews however started screaming that on paper LA was more expensive place to live and they deserved more. In the end nothing was done and there was a very valid point brought up. The bases tend to self provide extra pay by the seniority in each base. NYC will be a very junior base always because of the cost issues. Pilots there enjoy greater seniority and pay then they would at other bases. Should a pilot flying as a Captain out of NYC get extra pay over a pilot of the same seniority who chooses to fly as a copilot out of ATL for less money because it is more desirable from a cost and location standpoint? Everyone will have a different answer to that question however NY has always been the junior base and paid extra.
That's what I kind of figured. (I was actually just waiting for Buzz to jump on the idea.) Any discussion of extra pay for the NYC base would eventually become a discussion for extra pay for LAX pilots, too.
Then you could also bring up cost of living expenses. At Northwest, when we had a HNL base, I believe the pilots got extra pay because of the high cost of living there. What if we open up HNL again?
So, the discussion could go on and on for a long time. I think where we will wind up is dealing with what we have. But, if we can get to a point where we make enough money, paying for the extra expenses in these cities won't be such a big deal.