pinseeker

Ok, here it is. Prior to 2011, our contracts had pay rates effective on the DOS (date of signing). In the 2011 "bridge contract," the language was changed to the pay rates effective in the bid period. Now, on the surface, this might not seem like a big deal, but when you run the numbers, this can be a substantial loss for the pilots and a savings for the company.

Let's take our current pay increase which takes effect with the November bid period. In our first two contracts, the pay increase would have taken place on the DOS, which would have been October 31, or November 1. This pay increase now takes effect with the beginning of the bid period. Big deal, right? It is when you actually run the numbers.

So, let's examine the cheapest scenario for the company if the pay rates took effect on the DOS. If that were the case, the company would make October a 4 week bid month and November a 5 week bid month to save money. Taking a conservative approach, let's say that the hour difference was 17 more hours in November than it would be for a 4 week month. Since they are buying up lines in most seats, that is the difference between a 68 and an 85 credit hour BLG. Now, looking at the pay rate increase, with the highest being over $12 per hour and only first and second year pay being below $7 per hour, let's assume for simplicity's sake that the average increase is over $7 per hour.

Now, when you take the >$7 per hour increase and multiply it by 17 hours, you get approximately $120 in pay per pilot or more for the month. Now take that $120 per pilot and multiply that by our 5000 pilots, and the pilots lost $600,000 as a group in compensation. Again, remember, these are conservative numbers.

Now, let's assume that October stayed a 5 week bid month. If the pay rates took effect on the DOS, then since the bid month covered the effective DOS, the entire month would have been paid at the higher pay rate. This is how it was done prior to 2011. Since 85 hours is the minimum that any line in October would pay, let's use that number. 85 happens to be 5 time 17. So, if you take that, and multiply the lost money from above by 5, you get a loss of pilot income of $3,000,000.

So, by allowing this simple, innocuous change in the wording to creep into our contract, the pilots lost, or the company saved, at least $600,000 - $3,000,000 in one year. Now, this doesn't happen every year, but I wonder if the union factored this in with there increases in the value of the contract, or if it slipped by like other items that were sold?

kronan

You realize, the DOS for CBA2015 was 2 November.

The 1st day of the bid month

pinseeker

Yeah, and you realize that 2 November 2019 is in the October bid month. So if the language hadn’t changed with the bridge contract, everyone would have received a pay raise in the October bid month since the DOS was in that bid month.

As a matter of fact, every contract had a DOS the first day of the bid month for the month and year they were signed. Maybe that has something to do with not having to look back and pay back pay for the month that the contract was approved by the members.

None of this changes the fact that the language changed from DOS to beginning of the bid month and the fact that it has cost pilots money in the long run.

MX727

From 1998 CBA:

C. Hourly Rates of Pay
1. Beginning on the first day of the June, 1999, bid period,
the following rates shall apply.

2. Date of Implementation Plus 18 Months
On the first day of the December, 2000, bid period,
the following rates shall apply.

3. Date of Implementation Plus 36 Months
On the first day of the June, 2002, bid period,
the following rates shall apply.

4. Date of Implementation Plus 54 Months
On the first day of the December, 2003, bid period,
the following rates shall apply.

The language in the 2006 contract did not mean you would get that pay rate for the entire preceding month, but instead only for trips on or after that date, so your calculations are off.

pinseeker

Actually, you did get paid for the entire month, not just trips after the DOS. Just like if you were hired October 15, **** you get year 2, 3, 4, etc pay for the entire October bid month, not just for trips on or after October 15.

FDX1

Winner, winner, chicken dinner.

This goes down as a candidate for dumbest post of the year. Only one of our own could come up with a loss of income based on pay RAISES!!

Goes to show you, no matter how good you have it, you’ll always find something to @$tch about!!

pinseeker

And you are a perfect example of why we will never get the contract that we deserve!

The post was about a change in contract language that cost us money. The details matter! This point is obviously lost on you.

So go ahead and think it is the dumbest post ever. I really don’t care. Been here for 20+ years, and if we keep giving away items in contracts, I’ll be here for another 15 years or more.

Have a nice day!

MEMFO4Ever

Yeah, we got it rough

Statistically you will most likely stay here for another 15 years anyway. Big deal. Welcome to the fly until you are 65 club; nearly everyone is a member.

LunkerHunter

Can’t speak for others, but I didn’t interpret the OP as useless @$tching... it did garner some good perspective from a few others.

So we have a pretty good contract- does that mean we shouldn’t strive to make the next one better?

Do you believe that the corporate lawyers aren’t trying to inject language that will yield a financial benefit to the company regardless of the effect on pilots’ qol/benefits?

I wish more people that have been on property a lot longer than me would start threads like these so I can learn and gain perspective.

pinseeker

Yeah, your right, what was I thinking. We’ve got it great. The contract is great. Lie flat seats and an A plan retirement that hasn’t changed in 20+ years are great. Let’s make the next contract easy and just take a less than 3% raise, you know, like the raise we took last time. They can just tell us that it is 3% or more and we will be happy because we have it great. We can tell them how good we have it and just make this contract continue until the end of the century.