Compass and the Stapler
After years of lurking in the shadows I’ll weigh into this one.
I’ll say this very slowly and clearly, Compass pilots will NEVER be stabled to the bottom of the Delta seniority list.
I don’t care how much foot stomping about “main line should fly this or that size aircraft Delta management will Never allow it. Period. They have about six million reasons why, the rough amount their payroll would increase in a year if they raised E175 pay to even Jet Blue E190 pay. If it was raised to USAir E190 pay, it would increase the payroll about 3.5 million.
Management has no incentive to do this at all. None, and they would be the one’s who would pull the trigger on this. Duh. They relish their little “regional” and the corresponding payroll that comes with it. They, ok NWA, paid a princely sum for the old ACA / Indy certificate, spent precious treasure to set it up and love the pay structure. There is absolutely no incentive ALPA could dangle in front of Delta management that would move the company to pull out the stapler.
Flow through, up / down agreements, sure whatever may or may not be negotiated with the new Delta but the staple doesn’t have to exist for a Delta pilot to flow down should Delta furlough.
Now could some other combination occur with their myriad regional feed, Comair+Compass, now there’s a stapling situation, with the Eagle like seniority of Comair compared to puerile Compass, (hey that’d be like a mini USAir-Cactus combination with Comair’s furloughed pilots) why would Delta want the management overhead of two wholly owned feeders? There could be something there, just back yard conjecture who knows, there sure are many regional’s jostling for position at the Delta trough now. But Compass in one form or another will be at the trough with the rest.
Last edited by hiplainsdrifter; 03-09-2009 at 06:50 AM.