Originally Posted by
Kellwolf
Here's the advantage of getting your insurance taken care of in a CBA: the company can't just arbitrarily change things year after year. As it stands now, people are running around talking about insurance premiums doubling next year, and it's entirely possible. With a CBA with insurance language, there are things they can and can't do. For example, where I am now, we're pretty much locked in what we have until we re-negotiate (or the court kills it in bankruptcy court). It actually worked to our advantage being under a CBA in negotiations for 7 years. We were still paying late 90s insurance rates because of the CBA until a new one was negotiated. Sad part is, I fly CRJ-200s, and our insurance is better than what jetBlue has.
Yes, insurance is bad across the country, but that's not an excuse to accept below par insurance compared to other carriers. If a REGIONAL can do it, then I'm sure the jetBlue pilots can come to an agreement that both protects them as well as profits for the company as a whole.
You would have to spend huge amounts of supposed negotiating capital to get this insurance and the the language you talk of?
I do agree with your opinion that premiums are going up across the country
If I dont have insurance through JB (through my wife), why would I want to spend that kind of capital in supposed negotiations. It does not help me or many other JB pilots that don't have the company insurance. No thanks ,not interested. I'd like to spend the money elsewhere, where it were to help everyone!