Much of this has to do with management's mantra of "do it as cheap as possible." Pilots are considered a cost and not an asset, so the company tries to get by with as few as possible- to varying success. At most airlines, reserves are supposed to be used sparsely and definitely not to cover open time flying. That's not the case at RAH. Reserves can fly just as much as lineholders. This isn't a good thing, because it leads to cancelled flights, delays, Captains sitting right seat, lineholders constantly being reassigned. It makes for a stressful environment, constantly struggling to just barely keep flights covered. This is the company's philosophy in just about every phase of their business (even mx parts).