Everyone should take heed what people are saying on this board lately. 744 Driver is correct in that the tone from the company has changed in the last year. Scheduling is on full attack of the contract, your quality of life and your paycheck. The travel department wants more of your days off at home (pre rest and backup flights) and on the road by deadheading you way out of the way on company aircraft or two leg commercial trips with long airport sits in the middle. And ridiculous taxi rides across Europe, 7hrs. Hotels are getting cheaper and not contractual in several cities. Catering has gone down hill fast, we use to get business class meals but now they are contracting for the cheapest thing they can get the caterers to give us.

Now the new hires (I have two friends that got on last year) are all based in ANC. Three to four years ago it was mostly 30 day lines with most of those 15-17 days on in a row with only a few split trips. You could piece these together to get nice stretches of days off. Now they build 60-70% as 60 day lines that require you to travel to work several times a month on days off and you can never have days off over the end/beginning of every other month. These type of trips makes it rough getting back and forth to ANC and the IMPUTED INCOME for the new hires has been horrendous.

Couple other contract problems are with Vacation and sick time. If you are junior you probably wont be able to conflict bid your vacation so your vacation is on normal days off so it becomes bonus pay not vacation days. And sick days are only credited if you are below guarantee of 62hrs so if you are on a 73 hour month it cost you 11hrs or $1000.00 dollars or more to call in sick!
Example 50hr month call in sick=pull days out of sick bank to bring you to 62 hrs.
73hr month call in sick= no days removed from sick bank and NO CREDIT until you get down to 62hrs

I for one am concerned about why this is happening. Is it cost controlling for the changing cargo industry or is it an early attempt to make us buy things back in contract negotiations? but that is two years out.

Is this still better than a regional? Yes, I think so but i think now I would stay at the regional's until the majors called.

I have stopped recommending my friends to come to Atlas.