Originally Posted by
JUNEBUG82
Decisions on how to handle this will be best made absent emotion and excessive testosterone. In the midst of uncertainty and anxiety, a more pragmatic approach will protect the best interest of the pilot group. If your response to the request to reduce line values is driven by your disdain for the way management has handled things in the past, your approach is off course. Decisions of this magnitude should be entrusted to level heads who will consider only what is in the best interest of the pilot group with disregard for emotional satisfaction and vengeance.
Now, on from the obvious and to my opinion regarding what is in the best interest of the pilot group-
The question of what is in the best interest of the pilot group comes down to this: Is it better for the pilot group to have 13,500 pilots remain employed and credit 55 hours per month, or to have 4050 pilots furloughed and the remaining 9450 pilots credit 78 hours per month? To answer this, one must also consider the indirect benefits of avoiding furlough—specifically the opportunity to respond to demand-increases faster than carriers who have furloughed, and in the process gain market share that could be retained. I believe the opportunity this could provide is significantly undervalued by a lot of the opinions I’ve seen posted. This could be a tremendous benefit to the pilot group longterm, as this disruption could provide rare opportunities for some airlines. And while the #1 goal is survival, the potential opportunities are undoubtedly in the minds of those making the decisions—even though it serves no purpose to discuss publicly and will likely not be seen in the press or town halls.
Worth noting as well, one common argument against any revision to the CBA or “concession” is the notion that once it is changed it will be very hard to change it back. There is a very simple solution to this—which is to build-in an expiration date to the change.
Embedded Assumptions: - The amount that would be furloughed, in the event of a furlough, is 30%.
- The current MMG is 78 hours.
- The current pilot group has 13,500 pilots.
Disclaimer: I am a pilot but not a UAL pilot.
Regarding your disclaimer, I don’t know where you are at but obviously fail to realize the number of pilots UAL wants on the property is based on their projected block hours. Period.
If management wants the flex of holding on to excess pilots they will do so.
They also always want the most productive and lowest cost widget. Period.
The UPA does have some constraints on pilot productivity once furloughs occur. Those aren’t that huge but were negotiated into the contract at a cost to the pilot group relative to overall compensation. That’s how it works.
If the company sees value in the suggestions given in previous posts, including yours, they will present them to the MEC. Sure, we could propose such ideas at them but I honestly think it has either already been offered or they don’t see it as viable from their perspective.
The company furloughs, not the union.
Lee