Originally Posted by
Vegaspilot
TAFB is a bad benchmark to use. At G4 I get maybe 100-130 TAFB if I have a hard line. Sure I'm home every night, but with numerous single days off and no real big blocks of days off. Less days off in general. At a legacy (including SWA) you'll probably see 200-300 TAFB depending on your seniority and how well you bid. But if you can pull 3 day trips with 4-5 or more blocks of days off in between I'd argue your QOL is going to be better due to the quality and length of days you have off. Just because you're home every night doesn't mean you end up any less tired after working 2-3 days in a row and if you only have 1-2 days off you're just getting back to normal when you start again. I have a friend who's junior at SWA and he's already got a line for July with an awarded 19 days off. One block of 7 and the rest blocks of 4. He just showed me how he's modified it and now has 22 days off with more credit and bigger blocks of days off. We'll NEVER see that here regardless of your seniority. He's not even a year in yet!! So yes, if I can get that kind of schedule with a real CBA with work rules, but it means 3-4 day trips SIGN ME UP. And this is under their current CBA...imagine how bad it's going to blow ours out of the water when they get their next one.
So you can argue that this TA (sure to pass despite us no voters) is going to make G4 a career airline, but without solid work rules (which this TA sorely lacks) it really isn't going to be a good career airline. Pay rates are such a small part of the equation, yet it's all the masses here seem to be able to see. I've argued and discussed at length with numerous people the short falls this thing has and all I hear is "think of the money we are leaving on the table" or "well it's a good first contract". It should be a good contract period. So I'm done...if it passes it passes, that's what this pilot group wants. But God willing it won't be my CBA for long. Good luck guys, if I'm right with my feelings of this thing, in a few months when the reality of this contract sets in you're gonna need it.
It's all personal preference. If we are talking about flying the same 84 hours for example, I would prefer an easy 2 leg day worth 6 hours with a duty day less than 8 hours that will give me 16 days off a month. I rarely get single days off but I don't mind them. Why, because I live 10 minutes from the airport and I almost have half the day off on the days I work not counting the 16 hard days off. I don't want to sell my soul for 3 full days working a duty day longer than 8 hrs and sleeping in a hotel just to get the next 4 days off. Some people like doing that and you have to understand we all have different definations of good QOL. 200 extra hours of TAFB a month is over 10 years of my life away from home when I add up the remainder of my career.