Originally Posted by
Skyvector
Just announced. This is in addition to the 40 that are already coming. And this is just the beginning of much more.
To put Skyvector's enthusiasm into perspective:
April 27, 2017
"Greetings,
As you may have already heard, yesterday American announced across-the-board pay increases for their pilots and flight attendants to levels that are “equal to the highest rates currently in place at either Delta or United.” This is fantastic news for the American pilots, and gives even more incentive for a new hire to join the ranks of Envoy today and later flow through to a very lucrative career.
Eight percent is the alleged disparity between the highest pay scales at American versus the industry leaders United and Delta. Needless to say, 8% is a substantial raise for a wide-body pilot at American.
However wonderful this news is for the American pilots, your entire MEC and I remain focused on achieving progress here at Envoy.
In their letter, Messrs. Parker and Isom write:
“…when we merged, we committed that American Airlines team members would be compensated in line with their peers at other airlines…But as our industry has rapidly evolved and pay increases at other airlines have accelerated, some of our colleagues have fallen behind their peers at other airlines in base pay rates.”
We at Envoy were also promised much during bankruptcy, most of which was reneged upon less than two weeks after AAG/AMR emerged from bankruptcy. Indeed, we were immediately forced into additional concessionary talks – else we become “Comair II.”
A lot has changed since those dour days, and for the better in many regards. One promise, made by both AA and our own company was the assurance that the Envoy pilots would remain a vital and important part of the American Airlines network. While our pilots provide exceptional, mainline-level service with the highest standard of safety, our compensation and quality of life fall significantly behind what we think it should be.
To be blunt, our contractual pay is substandard. Temporary bonuses have made our pay tenable and temporarily competitive; however these bonuses could be eliminated by management at any time.
Your MEC represents regional pilots, and we understand that we’re not going to get mainline pay for flying regional jets, however we believe it’s time for AAG to “make the market” and declare that our pilots are worth an income that is guaranteed by durable pay rates instead of fungible bonuses. The pilots of Envoy provide an industry-leading product, and it’s high time that we are guaranteed an industry-leading income that isn’t “subject to change”.
Although I am clearly biased, I also believe that Envoy has earned the right to do more: to acquire more E175 aircraft(without the threat of PBS being attached), operate in additional markets, upgrade first officers to captain faster, and flow our pilots through to American faster. We have earned the right to more efficient routes, which will allow improvements to the miserable schedules we have suffered over the past year.
We have also earned the right to not be harassed at every turn: by the Flight Department nagging over delays and pushing pilots to work when fatigued or sick. We have earned the right to not have an outsourced employee relations department pushing pilots to not take advantage of FMLA. We are professionals, and have earned the right to be treated as such.
I understand the value the Envoy pilots bring to the AAG network. We speak of it here in the ALPA office in Euless, we hear it from AAG and Envoy management, and we see it in the crew rooms. From the most junior Envoy first officer, to the most senior American 787 Captain – Envoy provides American’s passengers a mainline experience: with one level of safety, dependability and reliability of schedule.
And just as the American pilots are worthy of investment, the Envoy pilots are also worthy of investment. Now is the time to solidify our income, expand our fleet, expand our geography, and enhance our quality of life. We’ve invested hard work into AAG, and now it’s time for AAG to acknowledge this contribution.
I’m confident that AAG’s investment in the Envoy pilots will result in a handsome return; now, and for years to come.
In Unity,
Sam Pool
Chairman
Envoy MEC"