Originally Posted by
Justdoinmyjob
Union control is paramount to a successful system.
Originally Posted by
NuGuy
No matter what rules you negotiate with the PBS system, and rock solid rules are a MUST, you definitely have to have a "kill switch". You need language that gives the pilots the unconditional right to revert back to the previous bidding system.
If you get 8-10 months down the road, and the result is not what you wanted or expected, you're going to need the Sword of Damocles to hold over their heads to get the system to work the way it should.
Otherwise, you'll get a never ending parade of excuses as to why the messed up system can't be fixed.
Nu
Originally Posted by
Flyby1206
As others have said, union involvement in the PBS process is key.
All 3 of these pilots say the same thing: your organized labor reps must completely control the process, have the ability to kill it, etc.
In the end, there's 2 basic facts:
1) no US airline that has gotten PBS has ever successfully gotten rid of it
2) no current US mainline carrier (the kind of airline you'd want to work for for a career, like BA) has ever voluntarily chosen PBS - it's either forced on them in bankruptcy (the pilots had no choice), or the company instituted it when the airline was non-Union, so the pilots ... had no choice.
Better the devil you know than the devil you don't. BA will always want PBS, so, if you ever want to dance with the devil later, the BA pilots will always know they have a willing dance partner in BA.