Originally Posted by
Sunvox
First no way our pay rates will end up 5% higher than Delta's so, yes, the percent for us will be less and MUST be because AGAIN . . . no way we end up 5% over Delta.
Imagine if you will we get a 13/5/5/5 offer with no concessions, minor QOL gains, and a bump in some non-tax areas. Then UAL pilots vote it down. Months pass and we approach a release date. The potential for a strike becomes front page news in all the media outlets. Just happened to the railway workers, and they got a contract imposed on them by Congress with one extra day off and a 24% raise. So you guys think we can turn down 34% in total raises and Congress will let us strike for more?
Personally I don't think that is remotely possible, and I pray to God most pilots realize that as well. Fortunately, I think they do and will go on record here taking a WAG that the Delta AIP will become a TA and will get voted in 70/30 or higher.
For anyone reading this and actually considering 13% DOS as reasonable, you may want to start reading your union communications. After we received our LOA 5%, the MEC statement was that they will not accept any deal that applies that raise to our section 6 negotiations. A Delta minus 5% deal (can’t believe this is even being discussed as an acceptable target) would clearly fall into that category; so if you’re in favor of that proposal, you’re actually undercutting your own representation- even those reps who voted to approve the original TUMI TA.
As has been discussed, pay rates don’t live in a vacuum, & it is possible to see contractual improvements (daily credit guarantees, for example) that push a lower percentage increase into the acceptable range; but absent some very significant gains elsewhere in the contract, 13% will never even see the light of day- the suggestion that “most UAL pilots know better” aside.
Because of Delta’s snap-up, 18% DOS for example would still put us behind them in pay, but we would at least be advancing the industry standard. Frankly it’s the least we could do after we botched our position as first negotiators & deferred to them to do all the heavy lifting. The fact that even now we’re talking about a DAL -5 contract underscores how we managed to get in the [TUMI] position we are in presently.