Originally Posted by
captive apple
It’s simply a tool to artificially lower wages to mitigate other wages which artificially higher than market would supply in other industries not unionized and are subjected to outsourcing.
This is correct. The "flow concept", which was not really supported by APA and not negotiated by any union, came about because Doug Parker wanted to guarantee that he had a ready supply of pilots. The carrot, was to dangle a mainline job in-front of prospective regional pilots. One critical consideration to understand is that the flow arrangement is not contractual. APA cannot negotiate for someone outside their own group, nor can ALPA negotiate for someone who hasn't been hired by one of the "wholly owned", yet. So there is no contractual obligation on the part of the company but there is a commitment from the company to honor the published conditions of their flow program.
Consider however that conditions can change. COVID is a good example. I could see Doug Parker modifying or scrapping the program any time it no longer suits the corporate interest. There are repercussions in people leaving for greener fields but management works for shareholders not for pilots.
The flow concept was designed to hold down costs at Eagle. If you have a guaranteed seat at AA then the program was designed so that would be unlikely to strike or go to some other carrier. Conditions of the flow specify an acceptable attendance standard, checkride and operational standard and no significant contractual discipline problems. If an Eagle wholly owned seeks too much in contract talks, then the company farms your work to Mesa or someone else who is not part of the flow program. The company is not contractually bound to flow x number of pilots so if Piedmont or Envoy asks for too much in contract talks, the flow from that company will just stop.
The company wants the flow program as long as the industry is losing people, and AA will lose a lot of pilots over the next decade. It keeps the costs down by holding out a complete career path to the prospective pilot. If you are one of the lucky ones and everything works, you would interview once at Envoy or Piedmont or PSA, and retire in the left seat of a 777, (or whatever they have in 35 years). If it doesn't work because of an industry upset or terrorist attack like 9/11, or another virus like COVID, then you will have the career that many airline pilots of the last 35 years have had. A lot of uncertainty and possible furlough or even see your company dissolve like Pan Am, Eastern and TWA.
There are no guarantees in this industry. As long as it is working, it is a reasonably good program. The retirement numbers at AA are pretty large which should keep the line moving.