Megaslacker!
In all seriousness, that's awesome. Hope the JA powers leave you alone too. Do share, how many days off is that?
You are dead wrong when it comes to our pay. I do agree that benefits, especially LTD/LOL could substantially improve and that is the reason why I voted NO.
Let me break it down again, but using relevant numbers and aircraft.
A topped out Delta 738 captain makes $265/hour. Let's have him credit 100 hours per month consistently for 12 months. That's $318,000/year.
Translated to SWAhili, that's $318,000/218.25 per TFP = 1,457 TFP or 121.42 TFP per month what you need to credit to make what a top-of-the-payscale 100 hours every month crediting Delta 738 captain makes. Now, I don't know how much you know about our new reserve being a 22-year veteran, but 121 TFP is often achieved not even picking up anything on any reserve, and we're talking bottom of the list.
Now... how many guys do you know that pick up and fly way more than 121 TFP in a month?
Stuck in a narrowbody for the career and aren't happy that you're falling behind your peers? Again, let's play with the topped out numbers. Delta B-777 captain is at $330/hour x 1200 hours a year is $396,000. Again, in SWAhili, using your $218.25 TFP, you need to fly 151.20 TFP average to make that. Now you're in my territory... that's about what I
choose to fly in a month... 16-18 days or so with some ELITT and premium, likely substantially less days worked with your horsepower.
One other thing you need to ask yourself, what percentage of Delta captains consistently achieve 100 hours of credit per month all year long? All of them?
Yes, I get it, a B-777 captain at Delta doesn't work as much as you do, and it's not the proper comparison considering we don't fly widebodies, but it only goes to show you what it would take for you to make up the difference for you to feel less inadequate.
So, in order to help our own 84%'ers take you seriously, you need to realistically compare numbers, and really, you're not.
Here's where we DO lag, and this is what you should highlight if you're trying to actually make the 84%'ers think about what needs to change. Our LOL/LTD is lagging our peers substantially. This was actually THE biggest reason I voted NO on TA2. For a company that preaches "the Golden Rule," it's awfully hypocritical to just throw you out the way they do if you find yourself out on prolonged medical disability. THIS is where we lag our peers and THIS is what needs to improve.
Other reasons I voted NO include some weak language, and the company's ability to stall implementation of certain portions of our new without financial penalties. For example as piddly as it is, red-eye pay, RCO, B-plan implementation, etc.
Our hotel language, though getting better, is not where we should be.
Crew meals issue is piddly. A number of my friends at legacies won't even touch theirs. But then again, isn't this what per diem is for?
Parking is a minor annoyance.
Here's where we do shine... I don't know if you use our Regular Plan for medical insurance, but it costs my family exactly 0 each month, and I know my max out of pocket expense is $2500 for the year should we encounter some major medical issues. My probie year, both my wife and I had medical issues, and $2500 was all we paid for out of pocket, and it included surgeries and treatments. How many legacies have literally free medical?
Do we have Southwest Express regional jets "exploring" our new markets? Nope, our scope still doesn't allow Mesa to fly regional jets as Southwest Express. I'm however very leery of the international codeshare. Speaking of, perhaps you should read a tad more into or ask our Delta brother/sister about the "industry-standard" joint ventures that outsource widebody flying to foreign carriers.
The point to my post is that if you're slinging feces all over the place and seeing what sticks, you're not really helping the cause of lifting the truly deficient parts of our contract up because you'll say things like our pay is not "industry standard" which will cause the vast majority of our brothers and sisters to roll our eyes and tune you out as evident by the TA2 vote, and yet you have some excellent points that we should all pay attention to but don't because of other stuff you say.