TonyC

One of the most common and enduring criticisms of our contracts has been the vague language that leads us to believe it says one thing before we vote on the TA only to learn that The Company intended it to mean something else entirely, and it takes losing a grievance to determine which meaning prevails. Even when we think the language is very clear and precise, "black and white," we often realize too late that we are completely wrong.

Such is the case with NoBrainAllDrool. He suffers from the same malady that allows us to get in those frustrating situations -- he lacks critical reading skills. He thinks he saw A and B plan when he read the Openers Document, and many union communications since then, but such references simply do not exist.

Let's take a look at some language, where it originated, and what it means.

"A" Plan is an airline industry term which we use to refer to the Defined Benefit portion of our retirement benefit. Formulas for determining the benefit vary from one airline to another, but they generally result in determining an amount of money which the retiree will receive from their former employer on a regular basis for the rest of their life.

"B" Plan is another airline industry term which we use to refer to the Defined Contribution portion of our retirement benefit. Again, formulas and schemes vary from one airline to another, but they generally result in a certain amount of money being contributed on a regular basis to a fund controlled by the pilot. The pilot is allowed to make choices in investing those funds, and spending those funds. Upon retirement, employer contributions are discontinued, and it is possible for the pilot to deplete the funds quickly, or to make them last for a long time, and funds remaining after the pilot's death pass to the pilot's estate.

We pilots like acronyms, so the terms "A" Plan and "B" Plan are often used interchangeably with "Defined Benefit" and "Defined Contribution", but they're not equivalent. Defined Benefit is an IRS term, and it includes a variety of retirement schemes, including our "A" Plan. Likewise, Defined Contribution is another IRS term, and it includes a variety of retirement schemes, including our "B" Plan.

Here's a twist you might not have seen coming. Read through Section 28 of our CBA (RETIREMENT (PENSION BENEFITS)) and you won't find "A" Plan or "B" Plan, and you won't find "Defined Benefit" or "Defined Contribution," except for a reference to expenses related to the Defined Contribution Plan. What you'll find in the CBA is "Pension Plan" and "Pilots' Money Purchase Pension Plan (PMPPP)." The former is a Defined Benefit Plan that we typically refer to as our "A" Plan, and the latter is a Defined Contribution Plan that we typically refer to as our "B" Plan.

Now, why does this look at the language matter? Well, it's because we get burned when we think the language says one thing when it actually means another. Precise language is our best weapon against such misunderstandings.

So, let's go back to NoBrain's assertion that the Union is fighting to improve our "A" Plan. That's not what the Openers document or any communications since have said. It says we'll improve the Defined Benefit portion of our retirement benefit. Remember, while all squares are rectangles, all rectangles are NOT squares. Likewise, all "A" Plans are Defined Benefit plans, yet all Defined Benefit Plans are not "A" Plans, and certainly not the Pension Plan in our current CBA. So, when the MEC and the Negotiating Committee say they want to improve our Defined Benefit, we really have no way of knowing exactly what they mean. For the past 5 years they have promoted nothing other than a Variable Benefit Plan, which they now proclaim to be a Defined Benefit Plan, so why should we think they mean anything other than a Variable Benefit Plan? Why should we think they want to improve our "A" Plan if they refuse to say so, or our CBA "Pension Plan" when they continue to hide their plan behind a fake wall of secrecy?


Nobody likes to be fooled by sleight of hand, especially when it's being done by their own union.






I think I have volunteered enough times to have earned the right to ask you this. Since you use it as a personal attack so often, please tell us how you're volunteering now, apart from being the Kirby Cheerleader here?

Oh, and you know what our "retirement specialist" does for a living? HINT: It requires an ATP.






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