I don't think he was comparing you to mainline. I think he was comparing you to other regionals. As for work rules (everything other than pay rates), your benefits side does drag almost every regional down, including Mesa and PSA. Just do a comparison with the percentage in premiums your pay in healthcare: 38%. Now PSA and PDT have been dragged to that and they are putting pressure on envoy as well. Look at your vacation and sick accrual. It is the lowest among regionals and the sick accrual has also been brought down at PSA and PDT and pressure is now on envoy and xjt, specifically because of Skywest. For the good rules out there that a few regionals still have, such as a b fund (xjt, PDT, awac, & horizon still have a b fun), you have none. As you said, matching funds are low. Other of the good work rules that xjt specifically has, you have no OJI bank, poor LTD benefit, and non-existent A&R policy, etc, which are being used to whipsaw against xjt in their negotiations. As for scheduling work rules, from what I've heard, they are not the best either, including historical block, BHO, min days off, and your PBS. And what you do have is not even enforceable. See Sfo pilots involuntarily put on reserve for the month as an example.

In essence, other than the perceived "good" pay rates (and I'm not including BHO in that perception), almost everything in your work rules drags the other regionals down. Pay rates are just multipliers of your work rules.

And none of this to mention the anchor of your me-too clause on the xjt negotiations! Yes, Skywest does help bring down the industry in this respect. Most here don't realize it because they have been convinced otherwise by someone who has an agenda to convince them of that. I'm just trying to counteract that agenda with my pro-pilot profession agenda.