Just another data point.
A Delta FO starting on April 1, 2023 would outearn a SWA captain on 12-year captain pay over the course of ten years. This would be true if the Delta FO took the first available upgrade on the 767-300/200 at one year or if the Delta FO upgraded at four years to a 737-800/700.
IMO, that's pretty sad.
More importantly, I hope it emphasizes to anyone who sees these compensation comparisons I've been posting that the SWAPA NC should be going for industry-leading rates, period. Our SWAPA leadership has said they will not forward a TA to the membership that is not industry-leading. However, they have not clarified what they mean by "industry-leading." That could mean industry-leading narrow body rates. Or it could mean industry-leading rates, period.
There is absolutely no reason in this negotiating environment for SWAPA to be demanding anything less than industry-leading rates, period. I'll say it again, and I'll keep saying it: the courts have repeatedly made it VERY, VERY clear that there is ZERO reason that SWAPA has to constrain itself to narrow-body rate demands under the RLA. SWAPA is "cleared in hot" to demand and to go after wide body or wide-body-plus rates (given the additional block hours, takeoffs, and landings we fly over and above wide body pilots). There is nothing in the RLA or the RLA case law that says we have to justify our rate demands based on any particular metric like CASM, or RASM, or ROIC, or OAL narrow body rates, or anything else. In fact, the Supreme Court has explained that, "the labor laws allow economic strength ultimately to control the establishment of contract terms, regardless of which side may have better reasons for its position."
If you want the best possible compensation, let your reps know that the RLA does not constrain us to narrow body demands (they many not realize this).
*Feel free to post this chart on FB or the SWAPA forum if you feel like it might help the cause of us all achieving a truly industry-leading contract.