pipe

For the mil affairs rep to take this on he will have to have a specific case to take to the dept of labor - i.e., an individual crewmember willing to fall hard on their sword. In order for this mythical Don Quixote to exist, it will need to be someone who feels they haven't got anything left to lose.

As much as we question the intellect involved here, "they" understand the rules and will push up to, but not beyond, the point where they will create that individual case that brings this crap into the light. It's not going to happen without a misstep on their part (they do seem to be treading mighty close to the line though).

Pipe

Albief15

Creating a culture of animosity, however, makes it easy for a guy at the end of probation to say "see ya!" for as long as the orders allow. The stovepipe effect isn't just about micromanaging your department for max returns and losing money in the big picture, but doing the same thing with goodwill.

How likely is a guy who has been harassed repeatedly at his unit going to go the extra mile out on the line? Pick up that extra trip? Accept a duty extension vice calling in fatigued?

If the company decides to just avoid military guys in future hiring, what will that do to their culture? A decade of getting kicked in the junk at the regionals doesn't make a guy or gal anti-union, but instead instills the "better know your contract" mindset. Ten good managers could have made this company a non-union workplace. Many military guys are not that enamored with the idea of joining a union when they show up . In this culture, however,many of the most die-hard union guys are those same military guys who figured out that there aren't many (if any) "servant leaders" in this industry, and if we want anything we have to work in an organized manner to make it happen.

I used to think there were some reasonable men in management. I still do, but I think their voices are drowned out or overridden by someone or something else. So, see you on the 23rd. I wish it was different, but we know what we have. Plan accordingly.

pipe

Probably the biggest kicker (for me anyway), is the fact that the mgt types leading this charge were guard/reserve.

Unbelievable.

Pipe

SteveA

Agreed. Another item of note I wish the esteemed Maj Gen would realize is that his ANG experience was completely different than the vast majority of pilots he purports to serve. If my ANG unit was in my domicile, I'd likely take a lot less mil leave. Most of us don't have that luxury.

MaydayMark

LA Times

SteveA

Nah, I've seen the Terminator movies. We can't let this happen, the future depends on it! Maybe we should form a union like the Dutch. We can call it FUPA...Fighter pilots against Unmanned Planes Association.

XprsFr8r

+1

And don't forget that when he started out, FedEx used to guarantee your pay when on MIL LV. You brought back your LES (leave and earnings statement) and if your MIL pay was less than your trip loss, the company paid you the difference. He still thinks MIL LV is a perk.

YYESIAV8

And why did they end that policy?

Rhetorical question...cause some pilots abused the heck out of it .

FDXLAG

Yeah that is why they started screwing us on accepted fares. It wasn't to save a nickel.

Albief15

I never asked for a nickel when I was on mil leave, nor did I think I warranted any "freebies". I just want to be able to do my job.

The B plan contribution was a nice bonus…that settlement came long after I was taking some mil leave here and there. Like many guys, I often dropped trips vice using mil leave to avoid phone calls or hassles from the ACPs at the time. Therefore, I "left" a lot of money on the table doing things that way…but I wasn't doing it for the money at time.

Just let the guys and gals do their jobs, and don't mess with them. I think that is all any of us really want(ed).