So many guys are against the B-Scale. But if we could get some 70/76 seaters on property at our negotiated rates is that acceptable? Does anyone feel there is even a shot at doing so? At getting 70/76 seaters in house?

 

Turn around! turn toward the camera dammit!

 

You are correct. The history of the B scale at Delta is fairly simply. In the 86 contract the pay rates on years 2 through 5 were adjusted to 60 percent of what they had been prior. If a L1011 SO got 100 an hour prior the new rate was 60 an hour.
In the next contract the B scale was reduced to two years. Years 2 and 3 only and the pay increased to 80 percent of the old A scale in those two years. Effectively 75 percent of the B scale was eliminated. In the 96 contract all percentages were set back to the original A scale and the B scale was happily dead. That contract however introduced express.
Express however was not a pay cut for new hires. They got paid about the same on Express as if they had been a 727 SO.
The actual pay cut at Express was absorbed by the senior FO's about to upgrade to Captain. 350 Captains positions were removed from the mix delaying FO upgrades substantially.
Delta management refused to ever admit there was a B scale since only one pay scale was published in the contract. They did not have to publish a A scale rate because they had no pilots in years 2 to 5 when the 86 contract was signed. This was in fact a Bold Faced Lie because with the purchase of Western Airlines they now a bunch of pilots in years 2 to 5 hired before the start of the B scale. Management secretly paid them A scale wages to avoid lawsuits but never published the A scale rates to avoid upsetting all the pilots at Delta in those same year groups getting paid 40 percent less and yes for you ALPA bashers they went along with that.
When the 89 contract was finally signed almost 2 years late there was a very small amount of retro pay back to the amendable date. The B Scale elimination in years 4 and 5 and the pay increase in years 2 and 3 was not however retroactive and no retro paid to those pilots.

 

It went away in the 96 contract. The 91 contract reduced the B scale to years 2 and 3 only. In 96 we had no pilots in years 2 and 3 so it effected no one on the property at the time. Thus kind of a non event. It was however a pay increase once we started hiring again.

 

It's been a while and my memory ain't what it used to be, but as I recall we argued this very point in bankruptcy court trying to stop what turned into Compass.

We said we'll fly them, just make an offer on the rates. The boy MBA on the stand said that would exposed those rates to "mainline creep". Mainline creep is a term I've never seen before or since, but that was their argument.

But, I agree. Have Delta just make us an offer on the rates and see where it shakes out.

Ferd

 

Switch to Jack?? Switch TO Jack? What self respecting football loving red blooded American male has to SWITCH to Jack?

Tennessee football and Jack Daniels.. a match made in heaven.

6 days to go.

 

To DAL 88 Driver and Scambo:

I WAS WRONG and YOU WERE RIGHT!

I am sorry.

C2K changed the percentages back to Contract 1982 for years 2 and 3.

Year C2K C96
2nd year 53.5% 45%
3rd year 62.1% 54%
4th year 63.1% 63.1%

My apologies for the misinformation. Contract 90 eliminated years 4 and 5 of the B-scale, not the whole thing.

 

What would managements incentive be for doing so? Better customer experience? Who cares as long as it's more expensive, then no way they will. With all the regionals out there aggressively undercutting one another, it's a veritable money printing press for them.

 

Tennessee has a football team?

 

Nope.... Not a chance