Originally Posted by ShyGuy

I've long held the unpopular view, leverage. Or lack thereof.

December/January heralded Omicron and snowmageddon operational issues. Many flights were put up at 150%. Many were cancelled. Sure, they could have come to the table and gotten serious. But why bother? Obviously they have a cost X which is related to cancellations and business costs associated with lack of pilots. Y is the cost of paying those pilots more with a new contract that includes scope, pay, work rules, and QOL items. It seems X < Y according to their math. It doesn't seem like this phase of operational issues is much different. Obviously attrition is high (already exceeded last year's net total) but it's not like they haven't already done the math on the rest of the year. The solution? "Over hire" by [insert percentage] for this calendar year. That's right, they're already costing people leaving. Attrition seemed like the one leverage we had going for us this year and it looks like it's gonna be a bust.

Now, none of my post insinuates that we should give up or settle for whatever offer is on the table. ALPA's proposal isn't unreasonable and in some ways actually short of what one could really go for. Despite that, they don't care and why should they? If I leave, they'll be glad to get rid of an 11-th CA pay and replace me with a 3rd or 4th yr CA pay. "It's not personal, it's just business." Apparently cutting 2% of flights due to the pilot training/attrition issues is still financially viable. So as long as X < Y, it makes financial sense to continue with as-is.


Lastly, it isn't just AS that is being affected. Many airlines are having their own meltdowns and lack of staffing issues. That's another reason it's "easier" to write this event off at the moment.