I made $7 an hour when I was a ramper at SWA in Vegas in 2000. I made $8 an hour as a fueler in Dallas. Pretty close to minimum wage and never used that as an excuse to not do my job.

My first couple years in the AF as a crew chief didn't pay squat either. Nothing like working 12 hour shifts on the flight line all day making peanuts.

You know adjusted for inflation that’s like an extra $400 a month over current minimum wage right?

You also likely had much better pass benefits than DGS.

If they want professionals they need to pay a professional rate, especially in this economy where you can make significantly more working fast food than you can at DGS.

I absolutely will. People who don't perform and have little integrity should be held accountable.

Better go back to your safespace. It seems i’ve triggered you.

Safe space? Triggered? Any more current played out buzz words you want to interject?


Let us know how your little temper tantrum to the ops manager goes the next time the rampers don't sprint to the aircraft. I've seen more then one Captain humiliate themself in public because somebody didn't do exactly what they expected them to. I am sure the next $13 an hour worker they bring in will perform much better for you.

You’re right. They shouldn’t sprint to the aircraft. They should be in position waiting for me.

Snowflake?

I can speak on behalf of one of the ramper managers and I bet it’s the same story no matter where you go. They’re simply understaffed. You can thank the penny pinchers at the top for that one.

I get that, but what about when you’re the only flight that will be occupying the ramp and you stop short of the gate, call ops, then watch the rampers mosey on out and take their sweet time? Is that really acceptable?

It’s not acceptable if they are intentionally taking their sweet time. But I don’t expect them to go any faster than a normal walk either. I personally don’t have ‘ramper’ job experience, but I would assume they have no incentive to put extra effort in.

FWIW I’ve worked for a company that UPS contracted out to load their planes. We got paid close to minimum wage as we worked almost side by side to the UPS employed guys who were making twice our wage (does this system sound familiar or what? Hmm). Did any of us hustle? No, we all worked at ‘normal’ pace. We were only compensated more with increased longevity. Another example is in the industry I left for the airlines, when I worked as an electrician. I was a non-union guy on the same large jobs as the union trade guys. I could land an electrical panel and make it look like a piece of art in 30 mins with some hustle. Why? My boss compensated me extremely well with production. The union guy? He would grab his 5-gallon bucket, flip it over, take a seat and have at the same task for 8 hours. Once 3pm hit, literally just drop his tools on the ground and go home. Again, this guy was paid off longevity, not production. I have learned through age that I won’t do an ounce of extra work without being compensated for it, because somebody else is benefiting from my effort.

Back to the rampers. These guys probably have the same attitude and I can’t blame them if their actions are not intentional. But to be honest, if these guys were really causing flights to block-in late and this was affecting profits for the big wigs, their management would hear about it and things would change. I don’t think we’re at that point yet.