Originally Posted by
Carl Spackler
Wow, settle down there Sparky. Vacation selling was something we agreed to at NWA in order to smooth out seasonal demands in flying so we didn't have a cycle of boom and furlough like the airlines had when I started. You have a staffing formula requirement to ensure the company doesn't staff the airline expecting everyone to sell vacation, so it's a win-win. But if it's a deal breaker for you, fine...get rid of it. What about the rest of the letter?
You really want to get into the business of "smoothing out seasonal demands"? Under the guise of making sure we don't furlough? Those are pro-company concessions.
Doesn't sound like an argument you'd normally make. You're normally looking to place things in the concession side of the ledger, when discussing contracts other people advocate for. In fact, you've got such a finally tuned concession radar, it
sometimes picks up things that aren't even there.
Did you turn it off for this?
Vacation sellbacks are a concession. In my estimation, a huge concession. If you want to argue in their favor, fine. Just don't kid yourself, and don't kid other posters, into thinking they're not concessionary.
As for the rest of the letter, I said it before: it's a great idea to look for all cumulative ways to reach higher W-2's, and I agree with 75% of what's written. It's the glaring 25% concessions/money garb I disagree with.