Having spent my whole flying career in the military up until about a year ago, I admit I don't have nearly the knowledge of the way things evolved on the commercial or corporate flying side that I should. So yes, it's a serious question and not just a troll thread.

How is it that Pay by Seniority (PBS) within a given company became the standard for professional pilots? For example, how did it become acceptable that a UAL captain with 10,000+ hours would have to "prove himself" again by a year of probation and several years as a first officer just because he switches to, let's say, American Airlines? A doctor, for example, wouldn't have to become an intern again and return to first year salary because he decided to (or had to) work for another hospital.

Has this become the norm because it reduces the politics, favoritism, nepotism, etc. in the hiring and salary process? Is it because company loyalty is that necessary in this industry? I could understand that reasoning if trade secrets were the issue, but design engineers and scientists who have knowledge of company trade secrets have never adopted this pay system.

How did the ridiculously low first year salaries at major airlines and cargo carriers ever get to be acceptable to pilot organizations? If it were an attempt to recoup training costs, then we should see senior pilots who switch aircraft types by choice taking a huge pay cut for a year during mid-career. Is it because the new pilot is an unproven commodity? How would that justify getting paid significantly less for doing the same work? Is this payback for company-specific training? Once again, this drastically lower first year pay is not common in other professions that I know of, so why is it for pilots?

Once again, I'm not advocating change here or trying to personally lobby for anything. It just all seems very odd to a newbie who's never settled for the answer of "it's always been that "way" or my personal, least favorite response of "it is what it is".

-NTFB