Originally Posted by
subicpilot
Thanks for jumping in...
Well, justified or not, it is the system we have and until it is changed, we must function with it. Call it seniority or as other organizations call it, longevity, almost all business rewards experience and increased responsibility with greater pay and benefits. We all come from diverse backgrounds and our respective experience and skill levels vary greatly. I suppose we could throw the union out and negotiate our own pay and benefits individually, as do other industries and positions, but I personally don't think I could negotiate the salary you and I are making without a union.
We don't have A, B, and C pay scales at FedEx. We have one pay scale and it applies to everyone.
Interesting thought I just had, is that if the union were able to incorporate language into the CBA to target senior first officers for increased pay, then a surprising amount of that new money would land right in the hands of people like yourself...pilots who have elected to bypass upgrading for increased SENIORITY in their respective seat. Clearly not the intent of that money.
Happy New Year Everyone!
Thank you for the comments and I respect the things you have written in the past. Here are a couple of comments:
1. Seniority and longevity are two entirely unrelated concepts. Longevity is a true economic factor that goes to experience. Seniority is a political "system" that has nothing to do with experience, only the sequence in which one is hired. Thus it is possible to have employess with much experience and little seniority, and vice versa. Seniority and longevity overlapped by coincidence during "Regulation" when there was no turnover in the pilot ranks.
These two systems merged in the pilot mind during the Regulated period, and senior pilots began justifying great differentials in pay based on "seniority." The fact is that even the most "junior" pilot at FedEx is very experienced and, with relatively little training, can do the job of the most senior. Junior pilots are in fact claiming this with every suggestion that we get rid of a 60 year-old. Of course, the currently-junior pilot will, almost instantly, be subject to this same competitive "loop," and this is where the never-ending competitive pressure and infighting lies. Age has nothing to do with it; it could be 50 or 90, and the same competitive pressure would apply. Only skill level and financial incentive play a part, and our weakness is easily exploited by management.
Even a family practioner with 30 years of experience cannot do the job of the newest neurosurgeon, thus the family doc does not represent a competitive threat to the neuro doc. This is not the case among FedEx pilots. Financial incentives must be reallocated in order to reduce the competitive pressure among them.
2. No one is saying to have no union at FedEx. The option does not have to be all or none, as some like to suggest. The option is to have a competent union that recognizes the divisive factors and is capable of leading pilots to solutions that do not harm them.
One problem with ALPA is that ALPA officials will not permit the publication and free expression of ideas that would promote change. The LEC system is incapable of dealing with issues of this magnitude but it is very capable of protecting the incumbents. This has been going on for decades and the proof lies in the fact that we are still doing business in a way that is not capable of competing with Fred Smith, the courts, Congress, APAAD, or anything else. As I have pointed out, our system only stimulates competitive pressure within its own ranks.
If people enjoy "functioning in" this system, they are welcome to continue. But, after three decades of experience, I do not believe it is wise.
Bob