Originally Posted by
sailingfun
I just reread the letter. I don’t see anything about still needing to furlough. Every company communication has stated they hope to avoid furloughs. The WARN letters are for negotiations leverage to get a reduced ALV to avoid furloughs. Nothing more or less. How it all plays out remains to be seen.
So we are hostages then - nice. Once again this management team proudly announces it's absolute and total disdain for this pilot group.
SILs - no, can't do that. We know they save $$$ - but no. Must put boot on throat and crush. Other airlines say - no prob here's your SIL or some other vehicle for paid LOA.
EOP - let's first take the pilot group and shake them around until their ears bleed. Let's show them that we have the power. Knock 'em down a notch or two, soften them up, then dump an industry substandard EOP on them - one that is still behind most of the peers. Still no SILs or other form of short term paid leave of absence as offered at our peers.
FURLOUGH LETTER - now that they are good and disoriented, let's dump this on them. We (management) would have preferred to wait the 30 days out, but that dang law made us go 90 - gave them dang pilots a peek at our cards. Doesn't matter, after the pay cuts from the MOAD, the pay cuts from the April re-bid, the $$ we will save from with holding full furlough pay and the fact we are going to dump 2300 of the evil pilots on the street = more money saved! Yea team! It's a win all around! We (management) get our smaller airline, we can pump those stock prices up to satisfy our investors (and further in rich ourselves - you do remember our stock burn backs right?). If this is a force majeure we (management) want more of it - cause it's gonna make us stinking rich (and allow us to torture the pilot group). Its doubly awesome!
No sailing, they absolutely mean to furlough, I think now it is clear they plan to furlough all the UNA. They've wanted us smaller. They ran the experiment last summer as proof of concept. We performed with brilliance (in their minds). gumm said he could run it with 1000 less. He did. He probably thinks that he can do it now with even fewer. He knows we are greedy enough to snarf up the premium time as they turn the dial up on ALV a year from now (don't think they'll change TLV).
As our JV partners file for CH11, they see it as cheaper flying, int'l flying at that. So I see this as not a force majeure, as it is working out rather well for the benefit of management at DAL Perhaps better than they ever could hope for without this event providing them cover.
NO concessions, NO gives.