I don't bring the topic up unless it's relevant to the conversation at the time. But you have a logical fallacy in your statement about lower pay and expansion. They don't have to go hand in hand. Many regionals have both. Just look at endeavor as the latest example. It's not like only Skywest has short upgrades either. I do agree that Skywest airlines is the best run regional, financial and operational. Which is why I feel you can do relatively better than what you have. Lastly, a union is not just about a contract and pay rates and work rules. That's like number three on the list. Just looking that the safety and security aspect alone should be enough for all airline pilots to want to contribute. Not to mention all the other things pilot unions do in advocacy, medical, representation, etc.




Not really. You are probably in the middle. Air Wisconsin, endeavor (it's going to pass overwhelmingly), and even xjt have better contracts and better overall total compensation/work rule combination. That's just off the top of my head. Maybe piedmont or others have it better, especially considering their finite bonuses. I mean, just look at your abismal (that's been too kind!) vacation accrual? That alone tells me you may be getting a big paycheck but at the expense of days off (vacation). This is why I say a true comparison is to take total compensation and divide it by block hours flown. This will give you a figure that takes both QOL and pay into consideration. And then you can compare with others when by looking at the ratio of this figure with your pay rate.