Airline QOL Comparisons
 

I'm interested in compiling an updated comparison on basic QOL factors and work rules between the various airlines. I think it would be most helpful and informative to keep the heated emotion and recruiter propaganda off this thread. Thanks!

I'll start.

Envoy:
Minimum days off/month: 11
Minimum guarantee (hours/month): 72 lineholder, 75 reserve
Minimum credit/calendar day: 0
Trip rig: none
Duty rig: none
Deadhead pay: 75%
Commuter policy: 6 missed commutes/12 months if one has 2 attempts to get to work.

I don't think this will paint the picture your looking for. The averages are more important than the minimum.
Its like correlating that the state minimum wage in Washington is $15 bucks an hour and only $8 in Ohio then it's easier to make $100k a year in Washington.

For example I credit over 5 hours for each working day at PSA, and it's always commutable. Our minday is only 3.5 with carveouts on the first and last day.
Same thing with deadhead pay, if it's 50% or 100% doesn't matter if your getting paid through minday, or on rsv. Also a 23 hour 4 day with 2 50% DH is worth more than a 20 hour 4 day with 2 100% Dh's. I talk to pilots all the time who say the bid to avoid DH because it pays less.

And your almost always going to see better minday and rigs at company's that use PBS, because that's how they got them. It can't be applied in equal value to a company with hard lines.

If you had no rig or minday protection and your junior with PBS then you'd go straight to mindays off min-guarantee, because the trip productivity would be so low by the time it got to you.
Same with senior guys, they would have limited flexibility because it would want to only award the high credit trips to them.
So in a way the company balances hard lines in a way that PBS can only do with a rig or minday value. It's not direct compensation to the pilot group.

Air Wisconsin:
Minimum days off/month: 12
Minimum guarantee (hours/month): 75 hours lineholder and reserve
Minimum credit/calendar day: 3 hours
Trip rig: 4:1
Duty rig: 2:1
Deadhead pay: 100%
Commuter policy: 2 attempts

My lowest credit 4-day this year has been 19h51m, my highest has been 29h37m. I have been averaging about 25h credit per 4 day trip. As a second year F/O, with the retention bonus, I am looking at making $85-90k this year before tax, not including per diem.

That's legit, Are the rigs just for line construction or do they pay in operation. I imagine everyone extends and makes a killing during IROPS.

Wow that's extremely good first year pay. Breakdown?

Endeavor Air
Minimum days off/month: 11
Minimum guarantee (hours/month): 75
Minimum credit/calendar day: 4 hours. 5-day trips pay 25 hours min.
Trip rig: none
Duty rig: none
Deadhead pay: 100%
Commuter policy: Call in honest policy. Allow yourself at least two suitable (not oversold/canceled) flights to get you to your base. If first cancels scheduling will more often than not give you positive space on your next flight.

All of these comparisons are in aerocrew news' monthly newsletter.


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Yeah I'd like to see that breakdown.

Even at 100hrs a month at 41$ plus 22k in bonuses you're still 20k short of your 90k estimate.

You guys are doing this the hard way. All that info is already published every month in a very nice grid for all airlines. Aero Crew has a monthly magazine that will show the details without the emotional issues this tread might start.

It starts at page 50 of the latest magazine:

http://www.aerocrewnews.com/acn/2017...N-May-2017.pdf

I am crediting about 150 a month with 9-12 days off.

How much do you make working right now in a month? No bonuses or any of that crap. Are you really bringing home 4-5,000/month today.

Yes, I am. I work a lot. There is a ton of 200% open time to be collected. With the trip and duty rigs, 100% DH and cancellation pay, good work rules, reroutes and extensions, there is a lot of money to be made at Air Wisconsin.

How many block hours are you averaging?

This, but there is some outdated info here and there.

Island Air QoL
Home. Every. Night.
AM and PM shifts. AM show times vary between 0430 and 530 and end around 1330-1400. PM show times 1300-1400 end around 2200-2230.

Well hot damn...good for you man.

That seems like a pretty reasonable commuter policy. Do they frequently give positive space flights to commuters?

Everything will be sh!tty.

There it is. It isn't an internet discussion until someone pops in with an unhelpful post.

It's not in our contract and they can't hand out positive space like candy so if you don't make a habit out of missing a commute then usually they will hook you up. But like I said they don't have to.

SKW total pay is wrong. They don't mention holiday pay or recurring bonuses. I would assume most other airlines get more than (Guarantee x hourly rate) as well.

They are all figured the same way. This site compares apples to apples more than any of the propaganda from the airlines. Pay is figured as stated on the page, HRxMMGx12. If there is something wrong with the figures or other info, then email them and have it corrected. The email for corrections is at the end of the comparison section.

Bonuses are not included because they are not a guaranteed pay. That would be like the other airlines that include their part of the health care that they pay. I would rather see what I will really make according to the min guarantee that is in the current contract and not some fictional figure that may not happen if all the hoops are not completed for the bonus.

Weekends
 

How many weekends a month does a freshly new hire can expect to work?

All of them.

Trans States
Minimum days off/month: 12 Line / 11 Rsv
Minimum guarantee (hours/month): 75 both line and rsv
Minimum credit/calendar day: 4.25 hours (4 hours and 15 minutes) with no carveouts
Trip rig: none
Duty rig: none
Deadhead pay: 100%
Commuter policy: 2 flights and unlimited use of it. I've heard of people getting positive spaced when they called and said it didn't look good for them making it to their domicile.

You must be new here.

Though aerocrew news does list the info, it's pretty tough to decipher.

I think the real issue is perspective. The majority (not all) of the folks looking for the info have no freaking idea what any of it really means.

WTF is:
Duty rig
Trip rig
DH pay
Min day
Junior man
PBS
SAP
IROP
(Insert every acronym, slang, and aspect of the 121 world here)

When I read aerocrew news, it generates more questions than answers.

Of course, I could just be the a-hole/idiot.

Airline pay system- a comprehensive source?
 

I second the plea of ignorance and need for assistance. Am a retired Army helo driver and am completely unfamiliar with all airline pay system terminology and processes.

Can anyone provide a link to a comprehensive list of definitions and a description of how airline compensation works?

Sincerely,

"Smart, but unfamiliar"

Block Pay: You're only paid for the time that you actually fly. A good contract is block or better, so for each leg you'll be paid a minimum of the scheduled flight time, or more if it took longer. The first stage of determining your pay.

Min day: Another term for daily rigs. The minimum credit you will receive for a day of work. If your airline doesn't have this, and you only fly 2.5 hours, that's all you'll get for that day. But if you have a four hour daily rig, you'd be paid at least four hours for that day. Daily rigs are applied before duty and trip rigs.

Duty Rig: If you are on duty for more than x number of hours per day, you are paid at a certain rate if it is better than your block time. This helps to counter not being paid for long sits. For example, your block pay for the day is 5 hours, but your duty time is 12. Your airline has duty rigs of duty/2. On this day, rather than five hours of pay, you will earn six. Applied after daily rigs, but before trip rigs.

Trip Rig: Similar to duty rig, except it covers your time away from base for an entire trip. It helps to counter long overnights being coupled with low credit days. This will be applied after block or better, daily rigs, and duty rigs are applied to top up your credit. Say you have a 96 TAB (Time Away from Base) four day, and your airline has a TAB/4 trip rig. Your minimum credit for this trip would be 24 hours. Again, this will only be applied if you don't credit at least that through other means.

Cancellation Pay: Is the pilot paid if the flight is cancelled, or if he is reassigned to duty that credits less? If the airline has this protection, you'll always credit at least the amount you were awarded, no matter what. If they don't, and the plane breaks, or weather interferes, or whatever, you're out of luck.

MMG: Minimum Monthly Guarantee. The minimum hours of credit that you will be paid per month. After you determine what you're to be credited based upon the above four items, you add this together for the whole month. If it is better than MMG, you'll be paid what you earned. If its less, you'll be paid MMG instead--this typically will only happen when you're on reserve and not flying very much.

Reserve: Basically you're junior and you don't know where or when you'll be flying, or even if you'll fly at all. You're on call. Sometimes senior guys will bid reserve if the airline isn't using reserves much, as they'll sit at home and not work and collect MMG.

DH Pay: The rate you're paid for deadhaeading (being re-positioned by flying in the back as a passenger). Can range from 50%-100% of block pay.

Junior Manning: Does the airline have the right to call a pilot into work on one of their days off? This would be done in reverse seniority order. Being junior manned is obviously very unpleasant.

PBS: Preferential Bidding System. The airline puts out a list of all next month's trips, and each pilot sets their criteria for how they would like for their trips to be picked. The computer then builds each pilots schedule in seniority order. The most senior pilot can literally pick each trip specifically, while the most junior will be lucky to get any of their preferences. This is in opposition to Line Bidding, which is where the company prebuilds each line, and each pilot bids for the line that they want in seniority order. PBS is great for senior and mid to low seniority pilots. Line bidding is better for the guys in between those groups.

SAP: Schedule Adjustment Period. A period of time after lines are awarded where pilots are allowed to drop, pickup, and trade trips according to a set of rules before schedules are finalized. Allows for great flexibility for pilots who have specific needs when they are creating their schedules.

IROP: Irregular Operations. This is when the blizzard hits the NE, and LGA, EWR, and JFK are all snowed in. What plans does your airline have to deal with the hundreds of crew who now need hotel rooms for a couple of days, and how does your airline get the operation started again *and* get everyone back home. This obviously ties in with cancellation pay.

Hope this helps.

Unbelievably so! Many thanks! I'll put my thoughts together on it so my next question is more pointed and intelligent.

Cheers

Thank you, Palarran!
 

Yes- very helpful indeed!!

Hello,

Very helpful post Palarran, thank you !

How does junior-manning work ?
If you're on a day OFF, are you supposed to take your phone everywhere ?

It's simple: don't answer your phone on a day off. You're not required to be available on a day off.

If you want to work on your day off, sure, answer the phone. But if you don't want to work, don't answer your phone on a day off.

if you do accidentally answer an unfamiliar number and you don't want to work.... " To bad you didn't call 10 minutes ago I just finished a beer..."