Originally Posted by
flensr
Spirit is a real player in the ULCC/LCC space. They have a big boy contract and their hiring teams absolutely hate the idea that pilots might be simply touching base there on the way to a legacy. They did it to themselves when they ****ed off so many ex-military pilots who gave spirit a try but were disgusted by the idiocy displayed by spirit management during the contract negotiations, but the sentiment is real. Any hint that spirit is just a touch and go and the application will likely get sorted to the circular file. Mil pilots spent their mil career with an incompetent leadership chain that has permitted work conditions and compensation to continuously degrade, and they're not willing to work for a company that is running the same playbook. Pilots with a purely civilian background who have a similar attitude might find it hard to get hired at spirit especially now
For a pilot with 18 or less years remaining (ie. many retired mil), the career compensation (to age 65) at spirit and SWA are nearly identical, but the flying at spirit will be 2-3 leg days with a 5 year upgrade, vs. 4-5 leg days and a 10 year upgrade. An older pilot with 10-20 years remaining may actually get paid more for less work at Spirit than SWA. That may change with 2020 but it's shaping up to be a battle.
SW may be facing hiring headwinds the likes it hasn't seen since it was a laughable bottom-dweller. Eventually the cinderella, the pedigree flocked there to experience the LUV, but most would say that's pretty much gone, along with the financial incentives to work there.
While legacies throw more money at their pilots, even prior to contract amendable dates, SW angers its pilots by dragging out negotiations for years (mechanic's contract expired 6 years ago) and then settles at rates that are uncompetitive by DOS (SW FOs with 1-4 years can now expect up to $30/hour less than their legacy counterparts). Unlike SW's 10 year upgrade, legacy FOs are more likely to be glancing over at the captain pay scales by year 4, unless they choose the lucrative QOL flying associated with wide bodies. It's not just the legacies they're losing candidates to either, as ULCCs now offer comparable rates with quick upgrades, better equipment, and, in some cases, zero overnights. Tough to argue.
Until recently, one could argue that the comparably overworked SW pilots, although behind in hourly rates, could make up the difference with overtime (premium) pay, but that appears to have dried up as well. Whether that's temporary while SW's prolonged ETOPs journey to Hawaii drags on or whether the staffing model is permanently changing to a more traditional, less lean/reactionary one is unclear. Some have even argued the possibility that SW has been on a hiring spree hoping to hoard the ever-dwindling number of applicants still out there.
Who knows, but to those researching their options, the data is a keystroke away and, on paper, looking better by the day. Sadly, despite dropping the ridiculous 737 type and hiring mins, SW leadership behavior continues to indicate the (mistaken) impression that they're still the destination of choice they once were.