Alaska Air Hiring
#3821
Gets Weekends Off
Joined APC: Jan 2015
Posts: 127
It honestly seems like every day I'm at work I realize something else about our newly inherited work rules that makes my jaw drop. Ever been kicked in the nuts every single day? That's what transitioning to L-AS's work rules is like.
The last 5 days of looking over our new schedules have been the most discouraging in my whole career. Airbus pilots are ALL losing something, with junior people likely losing almost every aspect of QOL they were previously able to not only look forward to, but count on. Gone are the junior lines of 17 days off of almost any legal combination of your choosing with 80+ hrs of credit and commutable trips, now we are forced to choose between prebuilt lines that are almost entirely uncommutable, almost all 75-78hrs with no ability to drop anything, with horribly unproductive trips with 40+ hour layovers for which we aren't paid, and many with only 13 or 14 days off. The fact that all of the lines are roughly the same credit, whether they are 18 days off or 13 days off, almost ensures that junior people will end up losing 3-5 days off per month, plus several more with the 6am reports and 1130pm release times factored in.
And good luck improving your schedule as a junior line holder, because all the trading is seniority based too. So being junior here just means getting fisted 3 separate times. As a junior line holder under PBS, I ALWAYS got the days off I asked for, including a week off over thanksgiving.
Every airbus pilot here is looking at a huge paycut, less opportunity to make extra credit, much fewer days off, lots more hotels, lots more wasted time on layovers, and MUCH, MUCH, more time spent bidding. I NEVER saw schedules this bad at either of the two diarrhea-tier regionals I spent time at prior to coming here. The fact that this is, and has been, business as usual for the Boeing side for quite a while is absolutely astounding to most of us because it is NOT NORMAL in this industry to have such absolute TRASH quality of life.
And while management is certainly partially to blame, who is responsible for many of the "fatigue mitigation" rules that are built into our pairing construction, independent of the CBA? Just saying. This needs to end NOW.
And to the OP, if it wasn't obvious, don't come here.
The last 5 days of looking over our new schedules have been the most discouraging in my whole career. Airbus pilots are ALL losing something, with junior people likely losing almost every aspect of QOL they were previously able to not only look forward to, but count on. Gone are the junior lines of 17 days off of almost any legal combination of your choosing with 80+ hrs of credit and commutable trips, now we are forced to choose between prebuilt lines that are almost entirely uncommutable, almost all 75-78hrs with no ability to drop anything, with horribly unproductive trips with 40+ hour layovers for which we aren't paid, and many with only 13 or 14 days off. The fact that all of the lines are roughly the same credit, whether they are 18 days off or 13 days off, almost ensures that junior people will end up losing 3-5 days off per month, plus several more with the 6am reports and 1130pm release times factored in.
And good luck improving your schedule as a junior line holder, because all the trading is seniority based too. So being junior here just means getting fisted 3 separate times. As a junior line holder under PBS, I ALWAYS got the days off I asked for, including a week off over thanksgiving.
Every airbus pilot here is looking at a huge paycut, less opportunity to make extra credit, much fewer days off, lots more hotels, lots more wasted time on layovers, and MUCH, MUCH, more time spent bidding. I NEVER saw schedules this bad at either of the two diarrhea-tier regionals I spent time at prior to coming here. The fact that this is, and has been, business as usual for the Boeing side for quite a while is absolutely astounding to most of us because it is NOT NORMAL in this industry to have such absolute TRASH quality of life.
And while management is certainly partially to blame, who is responsible for many of the "fatigue mitigation" rules that are built into our pairing construction, independent of the CBA? Just saying. This needs to end NOW.
And to the OP, if it wasn't obvious, don't come here.
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#3822
Gets Weekends Off
Joined APC: Apr 2013
Posts: 647
I wasn't talking about pre- vs. post-JCBA, I'm talking about pre- vs. post-JCTE for the airbus people. But since you brought it up, the JCBA was a huge raise for the Boeing side too so that point is kind of irrelevant. Anyway, I think it would be pretty eye-opening for the Boeing pilots to see just how many Airbus people would give up their new payrates to have their old schedules back after getting the gut punch of these lines.
#3823
Gets Weekends Off
Joined APC: Jun 2006
Position: Left, right & center
Posts: 769
I don't think Alaska has "competitive" in mind, although they may ask you if you've considered Horizon.
I have 7500 hours total, 3600 jet PIC, 17 years of SEAK flying, internal recommendations, no black marks or red flags, and I live in Seattle. In 6+ years of trying, I can't get an interview. (Actually, I got the interview before the interview, at which they told me I'd get a call "in a few weeks". Then they freaked out, stopped hiring and forgot all about me.)
Just apply at the next opportunity. It's simple, takes almost no time, and costs you nothing. There's no reason not to apply. They call who they call. There seems to be no rhyme or reason to it. Every Alaska crew I've jumpseated with says they don't know how it works either.
I have 7500 hours total, 3600 jet PIC, 17 years of SEAK flying, internal recommendations, no black marks or red flags, and I live in Seattle. In 6+ years of trying, I can't get an interview. (Actually, I got the interview before the interview, at which they told me I'd get a call "in a few weeks". Then they freaked out, stopped hiring and forgot all about me.)
Just apply at the next opportunity. It's simple, takes almost no time, and costs you nothing. There's no reason not to apply. They call who they call. There seems to be no rhyme or reason to it. Every Alaska crew I've jumpseated with says they don't know how it works either.
#3825
Gets Weekends Off
Joined APC: Apr 2018
Posts: 667
On the Bus side, my W2 pre-AS rates (2017), was equal to, or better than the avg AS Capt with the same seniority (top of scale). And my QOL was better... MUCH, MUCH better.
Last year (2018) on the AS rates, I did about 90k better than I did in 2017 with my QOL intact, because we were operating on a hybrid system - i.e. AS rates but more or less VX Scheduling rules
With the looming JCTE cutover in March this year, where we will literally lose just about every scheduling and QOL advantages we have, I am projected to make about 90k less and my QOL overnight goes down the drain starting that month.
My situation is not unique on the 'Bus side...
I guess we'll have to wait till the dust settles over Contract 2020 to collect our lottery winnings...
#3827
Gets Weekends Off
Joined APC: Jul 2017
Posts: 458
#3830
Gets Weekends Off
Joined APC: Feb 2007
Posts: 1,282
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