Originally Posted by
Free Bird
You're right, I've never had to swallow that sandwich, at least for 5 years. Hundreds of other Delta pilots and I had the cake walk of a 5 year furlough. The last 5 years I've been so insanely senior that I've had the privilege of only working about 85% of weekends and holidays, all on the mighty maddog.
I guess I've never really reflected on smooth my career has been to this point. More to the point, the last 5 years have been hard on most of this seniority list. We all knew what we were getting into by coming to Delta. Roughly 1,000 folks were furloughed following 9-11, I don't blame anyone, it's what comes along with this job. you guys volunteered to work here, sorry it hasn't worked out for you like you planned.
I think you missed the point when you talk about blame...
This isn't about blame, but about making it right.
Your experience being furloughed should have at the very least made you intimately familiar with the fact that
seniority is our currency and it determines everything...
- Equipment
- Base
- Pay
- Days Off
- Vacation
- Quality of Life
- Employment Status
Personally I have no problem with our seniority based system because as they always say "son, you'll be senior some day"
But there
is a problem. While Delta has indeed hired a few pilots in the last few years, the number of pilots at Delta isn't rising but on the decline. There are fewer captain positions now than just a few years ago. That means the absolute seniority number while it might be going up is not "worth as much as it once was."
In essence what we have is seniority inflation, that is the same or better seniority you had a few years back is worth less today.
If we are going to run a seniority based system then there has to be a commitment to seniority growth. I don't want growth for growth's sake, but I do have trouble with the attitude of some reps and committee members that don't think seniority growth should be their concern at all...
In my opinion there are few pilots that haven't progressed to where they are all on their own accord. Most of us are where we are because of others lending a hand. To me, this industry comes with an implied responsibility to pay it forward and to leave the profession a better place than what we found.
But maybe I have it all wrong ;-)
Cheers
George