People are wired to chase those in black hats. Whatever the "black hat" is, if it is popular to chase it, it is human nature to do so. History is riddled with this.

Carl, with all due respect, management is not our enemy. I know it seems this way. Perhaps with the "big" oil or "big" that, the Obama followers perhaps think that "evil" and "corporation" just go together.

Here is the reality: When the company furloughed a bunch of pilots and downgraded others, there was a slew of sick calls. Why? Ummm, in order to bank all that pay at captains pay, or before being shown the door. I get it and would do the same thing. Management on the other hand is trying to get away with every little tactic they can to save money. Pilots don't care if calling in sick pulls money out of the company any more than the company cares that stalling contract negotiations will rob us of money. Its human nature. It is what fuels the economy in the first place.

When buying a car, you'll haggle and haggle and try every tactic in the book to pay as little as possible, while the seller will do everything to get as much money out of you as possible. Once settled, you will shake hands, and off you go. Its just the way it is and the way it has to be.

The decision to be an airline pilot and fly multi million dollar airplanes is a decision that curses you to the rest of our career on the side lines waiting and watching for what decisions management comes up with that will effect you. There is NOTHING that we can do about it. It is THEIR company, with THEIR routes, negotiated by THEM. It is THEIR competence or lack of it that puts us on the streets or sitting in a SWA'ish job. Those SWA pilots do the exact same things we do in the RJs. The difference: Their management (thus far - all good things come to an end sometime) seem to know how to run an airline.

TSA's gift, in my opinion, as bad as it is for us, is that they know how to manipulate pilots to keep their costs down. We are nothing but pawns on their chess board to be postion at will. Do you think that a line of navy blue suits holding cardboard signs is going to do a thing? They'll just laugh at it. And it is sad that is is all we can do. Now, a strike will hit them where it hurts. THAT is how you get something done. And rest assured, if Hulas has any desire to keep TSA as a going concern, nothing will happen until the very last minute. And when it does, think about how much money it saved them to stall as long as they did. From a $$$$ viewpoint, it is brilliant. Back pay? Forget about it. Its not impossible, but if it happens at all, it'll be dirty dealings. Perhaps this is part of the decision to displace right now, announce furloughes 4 months in advance. The more ****ed off pilots leave, especially those on the upper levels of the seniority list, the cheaper it'll be for them.

Something else I thought of the other day from reading another thread. It is possible to get stuck in a "purgatory" of sorts where you are unemployed, yet have anywhere from 5,000 - 8,000 hours jet time. The regionals would rather hire 400 hour pimple faced guys right out of ERAU because the potential ROI is greater. A multi thousand hour pilot will more likely leave (because he is qualified for more jobs) when something better comes. Whereas the 400 hour pilot is barely marketable (still meets insurance requirements), and is likely to hold out to build the required time. Is this the most slimeball thing ever?!!! These companies don't really care about your hours. As long as you meet the requirements in the eyes of the FEDs, insurance, etc, then it is all about ROI.

I believe this is another reason that we are seeing well qualified pilots on the streets caught between the regionals and the majors. The regionals don't want them, and the majors aren't hiring.

Its dog eat dog, man. But, I say again: Its business. Don't hate the playas, hate the game.

I have more to say to illustrate the point, but this is long enough....

 

I understand that we are in a "dog eat dog" world and being an airline pilot is like one massive rat race, everyone scrambling over each other to get to the top.

What I do not understand is why it has to be like this. Why do we have to cut each other's throats and fight with management? I'm not a huge fan of fighting with people. I like to kill'em with kindness But as the days go on and the fighting continues, I start to realize that I am going to have to look out for me and my own first and my colleagues second. Because I know you all will do the same.

As it stands now, I would like to see our industry thrive and return to the good ol' days. But I know that the only way to do that is to keeping pushing forward, eyes to the sky, hoping that your fellow pilots will do the same.

 

If this is the case then focus your efforts on him....

Im wondering here (and this is not to provoke), if there will be other ALPA pilots on the majors hiring boards, dont you think it is possible that there will be a few GJ people on them too, or mabye just a family member of someone who was mistreated as one. And how are you going to react when they deny someone a job becasue they worked for TSA. Does no one see that this whipsaw started by management (as you put it by creating an alter-ego), is going to last for the next 40years. Pilot against pilot. WHO WINS? Now who wants to work in that kind of industry for 40 years. Do not forget:
--For every TSA that hates a GJ, and denys a JS, there is a GJ that now hates all TSA, even if its an alpa major pilot that denied him who do you think he will blame?, You didnt do it but he blames you, and thats kinda how he feels, he wasnt there during the mess, but he got punished...see how this spirals down hill
---someday he will move on, so will you, so you have a TSA and GJ pilot at a different airline still trying to get even with any pilot from the oppisite background, for percieved wrongs, some real, some not...again the WHIPSAW continues.

Is this the precedent we all want to live with forever. Im not saying that we have to like the way GJ was founded but it is not going away, so again why not try to get the GJ and TSA pilots together ...but I am sure I am talking to a brick wall here..It seems some ,(not all), but some TSA are so binded by rage, they are just pawns in a game too blinded to see they are the ones being manipulated by management, youve been in the trap so long you dont even realize your caught.
Again I say here would anyone be this voracious if there were lots of jobs out there, people weren't out on the streets, people werent stressed because of finances and the state of the industry, all of this is just food for thought, and solely the opinion of the author...

 

Well said......

 

The problem is amplified on this board.

Its supply and demand. As long as there are more pilots than jobs, it will continue to demean the profession. Why does McDonald's pay minimum wage?

If you needed your septic tank drained or your house painted, etc, you will go to the yellow pages and look for someone who will do the job correctly for the cheapest price. If Bob, who has been in the business for years, wants to charge $2000 to do the job, but Bill will do it for $500 because he is looking build a portfolio of happy clients to solidify his marketing campaign, you'll hire Bill.

Its simple economics.

 

Actually your last two posts, I tend to agree with (holy cow batman say it aint so....jk), seriously though the state of the industry is a self fullfilling prophecy....

 

Exactly, there is no reason to announce furloughs even a few weeks before the date unless you're trying to drop the morale of the pilot group forcing some of them to leave.

I agree with you. We should stop with the mentality that management is evil because that will not get us anywhere. As you have pointed out, pilot groups live and die by their management. Why did SKW turn down the ALPA vote? Because they're getting good treatment by managements choice. Unfortunately for us at TSA, management has made it clear that they don't want to be that kind of management and want to keep things cheap. Now that's not a reason to burn the house down but it's also not a reason to give in as well. What GJ pilots have doen is essentially give in at the sacrifice of their dignity and any hope for the REST of us have to bettering our management. I blame them, not management for that reason.

The unfortunate part is that managment DOES have the money but they make it seem like they don't. At my class at TSA there was a Very high washout rate, where did all that cash that was wasted come from which I'm assuming was about 10000 per pilot. And this was just one class, TSA has a pretty high washout rate.

 

You make a valid point, as usual. However, I believe that in the days of old when unions still made a difference in how business was done, Bill would have been beaten for trying to undercut his fellow workers.

Anyone with the right training can do a specific job. However if only a small percentage of those men and women of that profession start doing their job for less than is the industry minimum, we will all suffer. Yes, I am aware that GoJetters make the industry average for a 70-seater. But it's not all about pay.

GoJetters:
What day did you start paying dues at your company?
Was it the day you passed your checkride?
What happens if you decide not to pay your dues?
And what kind of protection does the Teamsters offer you?
Are you aware that some of your union representatives are management "yes-men," some of who originally abandoned Trans States Airlines?
Didn't a few of your previous union reps just get fired?
Why was that?
Did they do something wrong?
Do you currently have an open line of communication with our Union reps?
Wouldn't it be in both our interests to help each other out?

I challenge any GoJetter to step up to the plate and answer all of those questions. Honestly. Factually.

 

Go Carl, you guys could all benefit together.

 

JSing is a privilege, not a right....
But if you come on board with good intentions and don't break any FARs or offend anyone....Your company pays a couple $100K a year for CASS...
I think the captain pretty much has to accept you on their flight....just as other airlines have to accept him....

Denying a JS without a legitimate reason is discrimination..
If you deny someone a JS based on the fact that he works for GoJet....what's the difference if someone denies me a JS based on the fact that I'm a black man?