Originally Posted by
Check Essential
Here's the thing:
You've obviously come to terms with the "new normal". You've accepted that 9/11 and all the bankruptcies have permanently reset the airline piloting profession to a lower economic level. That's great and in some ways I envy your contentment. You must be a better investor than most of us. But,
Some of us were still holding onto hope that this profession would someday soon be restored to the pre-9/11 standards of compensation and quality of life.
This last contract was just very disappointing in that it pretty much confirmed that the people who run ALPA have also accepted the "reset" paradigm.
They jammed through these work rule concessions and what were basically "cost of living" wage hikes when many of us were hoping for far more. We kinda thought the corporation's emergence from bankruptcy would also mean the pilots' emergence from our bankruptcy contract. When it didn't happen it was tough to take.
The posts on this forum simply reflect that frustration. Let's face reality. We're not seeing any real gains in our purchasing power as a result of our "raises" and the seniority list remains stubbornly stagnated. Despite your apologist posts I think its pretty clear to most guys that the new work rules and all these JVs and codeshares have allowed the company to postpone any hiring or significant advancement. You lose some credibility when you deny that.
We both want the same things. The difference between me and you is that after a lot of time in this industry I am a realist. You believe that all we had to do was act tough and we would have been given a much better contract. This inspite of the fact the unions that tried this approach acheived nothing. You ignore the realities of the industry and political environment. You also ignore the gains we have made since chapter 11. They are some of the largest and most rapid gains ever in the airline industry. Contrary to the posts here we have not given up jobs since the 1113 contract and work rules are improved. Dalpa on here is painted as a utter failure yet somehow managed to produce what many believe is a industry leading contract and has certainly been used as a benchmark by other airlines. My basic pay rate is up 40 percent on the same equipment since leaving chapter 11. Reserve pay is up an additional 7 percent plus. Overtime pay is up from 1.5 to 2X and kicks in sooner. This happened in a timeframe many are calling a depression.
I like results not chest puffing and hot air.