Moser Aviation
08-31-2023, 02:03 PM
#11
New Hire
Joined APC: Aug 2023
Posts: 8
Contract Negotiations
A couple things. Currently going through contract negotiations.
The pilot group submitted proposals to match the industry standards with a 10% blanket good faith bump to give management time to work the numbers. The numbers were based on accurate comparisons to other part 135 and some part 121 companies because the attrition pressure comes from. A 7.5% bump was countered as a final offer after initially being presented as a good faith bump by the COO.
The pilot group wants per diem ($59/day) which should tell you about how the management thinks of labor’s fiscal value considering this is even in the negotiations. Management wants to wrap it into salary which provides less tax benefits for the pilots.
Additionally, management has stated that the flying part of the operation is simply a vehicle to prove the concept of Sentinel which is a data analytics program used to streamline flight operations.
Currently 8/6. Unless you live near a class B hub expect to be out first flight of the morning with at least one leg at arrival to the jet and home last flight of the night on swap days...often your last leg is a pax leg which introduces a ton of timing variables. Not unheard of for pilots to go past swap day due to customers being late causing the pilot to miss their flight home. Pilots who live at smaller markets are usually at the airport before 8am and home after 11pm on a smooth swap day. Swapping at larger airports over and hour away from your home airport happens and is on the pilots’s dime (fuel, vehicle, parking) because 2 hour drive is the unofficial mark for a one way car rental.
Pilots must keep track of their hours closely to prevent against getting their pay shaven. In the past, if for some reason you aren’t on duty for a full day during swap (maint, medical, sales, weather) then management has been known to try and not pay that full day even though the pilot made themselves available to work. If the pilot doesn’t catch it in the pay stub, then they lose money.
Pay min is 70 hours per month calculated monthly. If you have a high number your first week, expect to shuttle a plane to maintenance in Wichita or have an off sales week to keep your numbers ~70. If you are scheduled with someone close to their 135 annual max (some pilots fly for other companies and flight instruct as a side hustle), expect to be collateral damage and have hotel sits.
Pay is flight time. Block hours are meaningless and there is no compensation for long holds prior to departure (I'm looking at you Teterboro). Lav duty, restocking, transportation, resupply, cleaning the jet )including exterior wipe downs) etc...all on the pilots for no compensation.
Captains are paid well below industry standard until 5 years of captain time when they have been deemed sufficiently loyal or beyond marketable for the airlines then they are paid as a year 1 narrow body captain averaged for UAL, AA and DAL. Management's mentality seems to be that FOs below 1500 hours should work for pennies because the are not marketable in the 121 world and are getting a Beech 400 type rating out of employment. Management has said that the company gets 6 resumes from sub 1500 applicants a day so there is no reasons to compensate FOs any more than they do currently. There is no plan for a pay bump at 1500 hours for the FOs though. Training contract is one year for initial, recurrent and upgrade. They will not pay for ATP ride if you are not slated to upgrade to Captain regardless of your hours. The process for selection is murky.
Moser is an “at will” employer which means you can be fired for any reason at all and no reason at all.
There is currently a lot of grumbling in the pilot group. Work rules are not even on the table yet, so it will be interesting to see labor’s reaction. Some estimate as much as ~20% of pilots will walk if pay and work rules don’t improve which would be catastrophic to the company’s bottom line. It just seems like the leadership either doesn't understand the moment in aviation labor relations or they think they can beat it...either way, this company may very well be at a turning point.
On the bright side, the employees are great people and easy to work with.
The pilot group submitted proposals to match the industry standards with a 10% blanket good faith bump to give management time to work the numbers. The numbers were based on accurate comparisons to other part 135 and some part 121 companies because the attrition pressure comes from. A 7.5% bump was countered as a final offer after initially being presented as a good faith bump by the COO.
The pilot group wants per diem ($59/day) which should tell you about how the management thinks of labor’s fiscal value considering this is even in the negotiations. Management wants to wrap it into salary which provides less tax benefits for the pilots.
Additionally, management has stated that the flying part of the operation is simply a vehicle to prove the concept of Sentinel which is a data analytics program used to streamline flight operations.
Currently 8/6. Unless you live near a class B hub expect to be out first flight of the morning with at least one leg at arrival to the jet and home last flight of the night on swap days...often your last leg is a pax leg which introduces a ton of timing variables. Not unheard of for pilots to go past swap day due to customers being late causing the pilot to miss their flight home. Pilots who live at smaller markets are usually at the airport before 8am and home after 11pm on a smooth swap day. Swapping at larger airports over and hour away from your home airport happens and is on the pilots’s dime (fuel, vehicle, parking) because 2 hour drive is the unofficial mark for a one way car rental.
Pilots must keep track of their hours closely to prevent against getting their pay shaven. In the past, if for some reason you aren’t on duty for a full day during swap (maint, medical, sales, weather) then management has been known to try and not pay that full day even though the pilot made themselves available to work. If the pilot doesn’t catch it in the pay stub, then they lose money.
Pay min is 70 hours per month calculated monthly. If you have a high number your first week, expect to shuttle a plane to maintenance in Wichita or have an off sales week to keep your numbers ~70. If you are scheduled with someone close to their 135 annual max (some pilots fly for other companies and flight instruct as a side hustle), expect to be collateral damage and have hotel sits.
Pay is flight time. Block hours are meaningless and there is no compensation for long holds prior to departure (I'm looking at you Teterboro). Lav duty, restocking, transportation, resupply, cleaning the jet )including exterior wipe downs) etc...all on the pilots for no compensation.
Captains are paid well below industry standard until 5 years of captain time when they have been deemed sufficiently loyal or beyond marketable for the airlines then they are paid as a year 1 narrow body captain averaged for UAL, AA and DAL. Management's mentality seems to be that FOs below 1500 hours should work for pennies because the are not marketable in the 121 world and are getting a Beech 400 type rating out of employment. Management has said that the company gets 6 resumes from sub 1500 applicants a day so there is no reasons to compensate FOs any more than they do currently. There is no plan for a pay bump at 1500 hours for the FOs though. Training contract is one year for initial, recurrent and upgrade. They will not pay for ATP ride if you are not slated to upgrade to Captain regardless of your hours. The process for selection is murky.
Moser is an “at will” employer which means you can be fired for any reason at all and no reason at all.
There is currently a lot of grumbling in the pilot group. Work rules are not even on the table yet, so it will be interesting to see labor’s reaction. Some estimate as much as ~20% of pilots will walk if pay and work rules don’t improve which would be catastrophic to the company’s bottom line. It just seems like the leadership either doesn't understand the moment in aviation labor relations or they think they can beat it...either way, this company may very well be at a turning point.
On the bright side, the employees are great people and easy to work with.
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