kfahmi works for a non-union airline. ALPA was not involved in creating the compensation system under which he works.

Pilot pay by the hour is analogous to being paid by the piece. An airline's product is an available-seat-mile (ASM). When an ASM is sold it becomes a revenue-seat-mile (RSM). The number of block hours a pilot flies is roughly equivalent to the number of ASMs he produces. If he flies a larger or faster airplane he produces more ASMs per hour so his hourly rate will generally be higher.

It's not a perfectly accurate relationship but it's close enough for both management and labor.

The problem that kfahmi identified was that of an inefficient schedule which left him sitting around the airport for a significant amount of time. One what that union contract have addressed this is with duty rigs where you are paid a minimum amount for each hour on duty. This provides incentive for the company to produce more efficient schedules as inefficient schedules will cost them more money per ASM produced.

In this case it was unscheduled delays which created an excess of sitting (non-paid) time. This airline's duty-rig system apparently only applies to the SCHEDULED duty time. While that does provide an incentive for the airline to produce efficient schedules it doesn't help the pilot who gets caught up in unplanned delays.

Some airlines have tried systems which pay by duty time instead of flight time but that system doesn't provide as much incentive for a pilot to pick up extra flying. Such extra flying improves the pilot's productivity and helps keep costs lower so the airlines generally prefer a system which encourages it.