Originally Posted by
TalkTurkey
I am TalkTurkey and historically speaking (if you check my posts in the past) I’ve done just that. Talk turkey. Im telling you that a NO VOTE will yield more benefits from a PLAN B contract extension that is already negotiated and easily able for implementation. Vote NO first and vote NO fast.
You might be speaking frankly but your "turkey talk" is completely devoid of fact.
If you believe, we as a pilot group have some bargaining power over Delta please please give us a coherent opinion free fact base argument.
Can Delta "Comair" us? The answer is a BIG YES. There is no historical evidence that points to any argument suggesting otherwise. While Delta can not replace us in 90 days, historically, Delta has shown they are big enough powerful enough and arrogant to replace us. Can you site the number of flights GoJets is canceling or shifting to other airlines that suggest they can not staff their airline? From all indications Gojets, Republic, SkyWest, and Compass are keeping up attrition. Over the next year what percentage of our block hours can Delta shift over to any of the aforementioned (not to mention a shift to mainline) to cause a serious reduction in a pilots pay and quality of life? While our death might not be an ax blow to the neck, it is however more likely to be death by a thousand paper-cuts. One airplane, two airplanes at a time either parked or moved to one of our competitors.
In comparison to our competitors what percentage of this contract is subpar? Very little. We will be the highest paid and taken as a whole will have some of the better work rules in our segment of the industry.
But what about the flow through? Again look at history. American has a flow through not because the Eagle pilots stomped their feet but because APA (from my understanding) won single carrier status and during arbitration agreed to flow the ALPA pilots into American. Delta mainline pilots have shown nothing but contempt for a flow through.
One more thought. What percentage of the money Delta has earmarked for this contract could be shifted over to Republic, Skywest Compass, GoJets or for that matter another Fee for Departure Airline not in the DCA family in order for them to attract qualified pilots to staff and grow their airline?
I do not know for a fact if we turn down this contract Delta would not come back to the table and offer up more. Conversely anyone advocating sticking it to the man to make them come back to the table is living in a fantasy world, not based in fact, historically or otherwise. No one on the forum has spoken to Ed or any one from Delta to have the inside scoop. Like them or hate them closest we have to the inside scoop is our ALPA reps.