Originally Posted by
NoOneSpecial
Hired in Spring '11, held a line in 8 months in CLT. I live in base, life isn't too bad. I don't know how the commuters do it. Now crediting 100-110 hours a month averaging 1 open time pickup. SDO pay is 1.5 times rate with 4 hour min means a 12 duty hour high speed will get 12 credit hours, min. Nice way to pick up some extra cash. But this has supposedly been negotiated away in a new contract. Good luck getting guys to pick up open time.
Crews are great, only one Captain I don't want to fly with again. It could be better, it could be worse. It's a regional.
I think it will be a good thing to give up 1.5X SDO pay. It is a great way to make some money but it causes issues as well.
Say you want to drop a 4 day trip and have it in open time.
Well now they are going to have to pay someone 1.5x to fly that same trip. Whereas they were only going to have to pay you straight pay. Not good for the company.
So currently the company schedules us with only 10 days off. Makes it hard to pick up open time when you get so little time off.
Now if they gave us 15 days off and you wanted to pick up a 4 day trip to make some extra $$$ then great. It doesn't cost the company anything extra and you get to make some green. Win Win for all. Some people would rather spend precious time with family than some granny on a 4 day trip. Who can blame them?
The current 1.5x pay is here because years ago no one wanted to pick up open time. So it was put out there as an incentive. Works for those senior few that need to make 120hrs to make ends meet.
Also the 1.5x will stick around for Junior Manns. Or so i have heard.