Go Jet pilots vote Teamsters
 

AIRLINES: GoJet pilots pick union

02/25/2006

Pilots at Bridgeton-based GoJet Airlines voted unanimously to have the Teamsters represent them at the bargaining table, the union said Friday. About 100 pilots voted on Thursday in favor of the Teamsters.

GoJet is the sister airline of Trans States Airlines. Both airlines are owned by Trans States Holdings. GoJet operates 70-seat regional jets and began flying in September under the United Express banner.

I think..
 

that calling an outfit like Blojets a "sister" operation of TSA would imply some form of relationship. I tend to think that a small rat has more of a relationship with a starving cobra in a tank than TSA and Blojets....TSA is a great outfit with fine people...The other is an outfit that has only lowered the already sad bar of regional pilots....

Laxflier can you explain why Gojet has lowered the bar? How much are Gojet pilots being paid?

GoJet Pilots are douch bags. Ask a pilot at TSA.

Lowering the bar, in this case, has little to do with pay rates. It has to do with enabling management to circumvent an already established Collective Bargaining Agreement (TSA's).

TSA Holdings did not need a separate seniority list to operate under a separate operating certificate, which is all that was needed to comply with mainline scope.

Airline management is continuing to test the waters of alter-ego operations. First Freedom (which was re-absorbed), now TSA, which may ultimately be re-absorbed. Alter egos are simply a complex and cynical way to attempt to drive down pilot costs (wages).

Do you really think that a reply like that is the way to gain support for a cause? I'm a Trans States pilot and I don't think Go Jet pilots are d-bags. I think some have made poor decisions and some have made uneducated decisions. Name-calling does not help to educate the latter. So with all do respect, please don't. It takes away credibility from our pilot group and hurts our cause. Thank you.

Calling them silly names doesn't accomplish much, but don't think for a second that the vast majority of them are anything but unethical opportunists. They are harming their fellow pilots at TSA and thoughout the industry and for what? A little short-term selfish gain for themselves.

The original freedom airlines guys (FAGs for short) took upgrades and bigger equipment out of seniority for a number of months until Mesa ALPA was able to get freedom under scope. The fags and every other pilot at Mesa is now living with the contractual sacrifices that were made to get the scope that was necessitated by this handful of deviants. The rest of the regional industry is suffering as numerous companies try to baseline their operations and labor costs to the "Mesa Standard".

None of these people have any excuse, least of all ignorance. During the freedom battle, students from Mesa's PFT program were offered jobs at freedom...even the majority of these 250 hour kids knew enough to NOT take a freedom job, even though they had no other aviation employment prospects. If they knew better, what excuse does an ATP have?

I agree with rickair. It's not like gojets is the only company hirring either so its not that they needed that job.

WOW !!!!! Nobody like GoJets...!!! HMMMM thats why a lot of TSA pilots are overthere....???
Anyway...whose fault is it...TSA managment that screw alot of TSA pilots ?...TSA pilots that so a better opportunity with GoJets..?Or maybe the way the airline industry is now.
So if some of us gets furlough from its current job and have no job offers exept GoJets that makes him a rat or a bad person..Give me a break
I fly for quite few years now and i did not see anyone talking bad about the TWA and AA pilots when they merged and some lost seniorities..?
Guys...all as pilots unfortunately we became pions for money and stockmarket games for big corporations
Just do your jobs and fly

Right on brutha.
Now if we can only incorporate that feeling with getting paid enough to live a reasonable life....

Wow!!!!!! Was English your first language? Or was stupidity your first? I'll do my job and fly if you do your job and shut the ****** up.... Going to blojets doesn't make you a bad person...Just an idiot whose spelling abilities closely rivals a rock....Got it, genius?

You arent looking in the right places. The entire city of st louis seems to hate american. The ex T-dub pilots that are around here and a lot of the ex T-dub guys that are working for american. The controllers here hate american and so does the mx guys. The city doesn't seem to get along with american. I wonder if thats because American is responsible for shutting down half of the industry in this city. Saying that American buying a dying airline is different than trans states holdings startarting a new airline then saying we are going to merger the lists but the guys on the new list are going to be senoir to you so they have furlogh protection.

Trans states pilots are working for gojet because they think they are getting in on the ground level. They were guys that were not upgrading so they went over there so they can be captains of the nice shinny 700 for just a couple of guys more.


Side note: we just lost 11 j41's putting 88 pilots in an extra list. Has anyone heard complaining from us? no. express jet pilots need to calm down. In fact if you look at our history with codeshares most of the time we get out bid at the last minute so I would count your eggs you are planning to throw on the trans states pilots just yet.

I haven't found any goJet payscales. How much lower are they paid than the TSA guys?

Alter-egos are terrible.

Even if they were paid more, for the time being, the fact remains that they were created to break TSA ALPA. The reason they voted in the Teamsters is so that ALPA couldn't force them back in like Mesa did with Freedom. Pilots have long memories and Go Jets and Boston Maine will never get on one of my jumpseats. Ever.

So if a guy were to get on with go jet now that they have a union, would he still be looked upon unfavorably by most other pilots in the industry?

The whole point of GoJets was to avoid scope clauses. Rather than keeping them on the same senority list like Republic holdings did they created a separtate one and a separate operating certificate to circumvent their 50 seat scope with AA. Unless something changes similiar to what happened with Freedom I see a lot of animosity for GoJets pilots for a long time.

One thing I'm not liking is that I've heard them stepped on a couple times at STL and I'm thinking it was on purpose. Keeping them out of the jumpseat is one thing guys, please don't sacrifice safety.

Lets put it this way Mesa has a union now too but most don't care.

I guess I didn't make myself clear enough. I know and understand the history and animosity surrounding go jet. My question is, if a guy were to get hired on with them at this moment (never having worked there during it's non union days), would he have a stigma attached to him for the rest of his career?

You know something,... I'm really getting tired of you. You think you know what your talking about, but really haven't a clue. Now that you are a 121 FO on an ERJ you act as though you've been here for all the fights any of us have had for the last 6 years.

As I recall, within the last couple of month I am pretty sure I've seen your post about your class date at TSA. I've also read a few post where others have called you out and you are very quick to retract or deny what you have said. You remind me of one of these dipsh!ts that thinks as a 121 pilot instead of a flight instructor, you have some big "super sheild" around you that protects you from the bullsh!t you say. WRONG.

http://forums.airlinepilotcentral.co...t=Trans+States

http://forums.airlinepilotcentral.co...t=Trans+States

Show some respect! They are former TWA pilots, or if you are really that lazy... TW pilots.

Your grammar is horrible and that "ABC" above the check mark button comes in handy when you don't know how to spell.

Please don't come on here and represent TSA's pilot group with such ignorance. You may have the right thought in mind, but it always seems to come off the wrong way.


PtP

Yes. A bad stigma. Go Jets is still a separate entity from TSA but is owned by the same holding company. Even though they have a union, they are still there as an alter ego to TSA. They are there as a threat to TSA. Imagine this (and it probably will happen soon) TSA is in negotiations with management. Management says, "either take what we give you or we will simply transfer all of the aircraft onto the Go Jets certificate and fire you all." Think it won't happen? Look at what happened to Pan Am. And ask yourself this, if TSA management hates unions so much, why did they support go jets bid for the teamsters?? It's because it will make it harder for ALPA to negotiate them back into the TSA list like Mesa did with Freedom. And speaking of Freedom, even though they were brought back into Mesa and under their contract, there is still a "list" of pilots that went over there before they were brought in. So don't take a job with Go Jets or Boston Maine unless you plan on staying there for the rest of your life and never commuting.

Sorry wasn't tryin to sound like a dick just thought comparing it with something a little similar in the past would help.

When it comes down to it who knows what ten years brings and what everyone will think then.

Yes. And many folks will take that list with them when they go to major airlines, for future reference. When SWA puts you in their hiring pool, they post your name on a list for rank and file SWA pilots to review...if any ONE of those pilots has an issue with you, you're probably toast...:eek:

This whole thing just demonstrates to me how out of touch labor leadership is with the rank and file. They are more interested in their own power base and increasing their membership roles (more members=more money), than with the conditions of the workers. GoJet was obviously formed to undercut the TSA pilots and, in the name of unity, the Teamsters swoop in and pick them up giving them a level of respectability??? Makes me want to puke.

Nice manners
 

And I guess the way you talk..really shows your maners and how good u were raised...congrats on the great job they did...

Gosh gee whiz...Your're right...
 

Maybe I was too harsh, but when someone tells me to just do my job, and the afore mentioned person has NO IDEA what the Transstaes and Blojets battle is all about, that raises my blood pressure... So, if offended you... I am sorry... But before you get on your horse and tell me what I should be doing, open your ******ing eyes up and learn....There are things you should not open your mouth about if you are not involved OR have any idea about....And my mommy hates my cursing too....And you ******ing spelling is still below kindergarten level....So there...

Good answer...still but manners...how did you became a pilot......?

GoJets pilots are scabs...end of story. The modern definition has changed, thank you very much Freedom A Mesa, and those who fly there are abrogating the seniority of the TSA guys.

I love how they put their badges backwards in ORD. makes them easier to notice.
Mookie

WHew.. I got a good answer..... Anyway...Again...Good luck in you career pursuit.... Blojet is not the answer, no matter the upgrade time..... Remember....The time you need is quality, not quantity...Blojets may give you the "time", but the experience will be gained by working for a real regional, like TSA, Mesa, AWAC, CHQ, or any other place that places the emphasis on putting your time in, not circumventing the hard earned CBA of a long standing carrier....

Thanks for the reply....I am have a interview with AirTran next week so hopefully i will get it. good luck in your career too

I'd say that anyone who derives respectability from their association with the IBT is in a world of hurt. The Teamsters have had a hardon for ALPA since they lost the battle over the FEIA 50 years ago. If their little reptile brains think that something they do hurts ALPA, that's all that matters to them. At the end of the day they're just a truck drivers' union-the alter ego problem in the airline industry doesn't matter to them at all.

Sir:
With all due respect, if anyone is a loser since 50 years ago, it has been the Prima Donnas at ALPO whose main reason for existance is to greedily drive their employers into Bankruptcy and forfeit their members pensions.
(and continue to pay their President over $500,000 per year)
Also, if you are so impressed with Airline History, ever wonder why American Airlines and Southwest Airlines, can happily exist without the Holy Grail of ALPO.
Finally, the UPS Pilots with their Teamster negotiators have salaries and work rules that ALPO will never achieve again; (a mere iota of respectability_.
PS: Does your fetish for history contain evidence that the battle for FEIA hasproven to be a significant hill of beans for anyone?

This does not address the core issue. TSA pilots were blackmailed by management (these are hardly a group of greedy pilots driving their employee into bankruptcy); the pilot group refused to cave in, so management formed an alter ego airline, GoJet. ALPA has made it clear that this airline is an attempt by TSA management to circumvent the contract. What do the Teamsters do? They swoop in and give these... "scabs"... an air of credibility all in the name of screwing ALPA and helping their own membership roles.
I don't care what the Teamsters may have done for other groups, this was a very low blow.

Sir Blackhawk:
My 'core issue' is that although I wish the TSA Pilots success in their struggle, I simply resent reading that the Teamster Union is a Big Bad Bully whose main objective is to soil ALPO's lily white canary cage.
This is particularly irksome when a Poster erroneously uses a miniscule historical event to attempt to justify his illogical untenable conclusions.
Simply stated, ALPO's past (and present) is rife with enough shameful events and motivations to make any rational person reluctant to start cloaking themselves in virginal vestiges to support illogical assertations.
Only an egotistical invalid would think the Teamster's main motivation in organizing GO is revenge for the miniscule flyspeck in history that is the FEIA.
Finally, Sir, you are correct, although the TSA Pilots threw their lots in with ALPO, they are indeed 'hardly greedy......etc....snip
Again, I wish them success.
But equating FEIA and organizing GO was too much for me to swallow, and IMHO will not contribute to their winning.