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It sounds like an excellent plan but don't understand why SWAPA wouldn't just tell everyone to go RP and either ignore every other plan, or, better, don't even allow those other plans in the contract?
History lesson: Not everyone who works at SWA is a pilot subject to the SWAPA cba. In the past the company's choice plus plans were significantly cheaper then they are today however none of the offered plans were contractual for any employee group. Originally Posted by Tuck
In fact why would SWAPA even allow those distraction plans in the contract?It sounds like an excellent plan but don't understand why SWAPA wouldn't just tell everyone to go RP and either ignore every other plan, or, better, don't even allow those other plans in the contract?
In one of the most insightful moves old SWAPA ever made, they realized that the company could increase choice premiums at will. They negotiated the regular plan into the pilot cba which acted as a ceiling preventing the company from offsetting future raises by excessively increasing health care costs.
Under Obama the choice plan premiums rose significantly and eventually overtook the cost of the regular plan. Today it's a no-brainer for most pilots to choose the regular plan but it didn't always used to be that way. The intent of the regular plan was only to prevent excessive premium increases on the choice plans.
Those "distraction plans" used to be a better deal but not anymore and every enrollment period SWAPA has been educating pilots on their options. As far as the choice plans, SWAPA doesn't get a say whether to "allow" the company to offer them. They're not contractual.